Glasshouse farming and vertical farming are two established means of growing crops within a controlled environment. Both support predictable plant production, can be used to solve distinct challenges, and are suited to specific operational models. To understand the differences between glasshouse production and vertical farming, it’s important to look at how each method works and what sets them apart, before examining how a combined approach works and what benefits in efficiency and consistency this can offer operators.
What is glasshouse farming?
Glasshouse farming (also known as greenhouse farming) is the practice of growing plants inside a structure made from glass or other transparent materials. Its origins can be traced back to ancient Rome, and it remains an important production method for growers across the world today. Glasshouses use natural sunlight to grow crops, offering a controlled environment that protects plants from the volatility of outdoor growing.
Compared with open-field farming, glasshouses can be used to support faster growth, increase yields, and provide a relatively secure environment that improves crop quality. They also allow growers to extend seasons, producing plants that would otherwise be more vulnerable to extremes in weather.
Primary considerations for glasshouse operations
When planning or managing a glasshouse, several factors influence performance, namely:
• location – this matters because glasshouses depend on natural sunlight. Sites with limited light or shading can restrict what can be grown. Glasshouses suit plants that rely on abundant sunlight such as tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and strawberries
• installation and maintenance costs – these can be significant. Heating, cooling, and lighting systems require careful planning and ongoing maintenance to ensure optimal performance
• energy costs – consumption can increase in colder climates due to the need for supplemental heat or extended lighting. This has a knock-on effect on wider operational costs
Growers working with delicate leafy greens, or crops that require precise control over light or temperature, may find that glasshouses do not always provide the level of consistency they need. This is where vertical farming can step in, offering a predictable and fully controllable growth environment for a variety of plants.
What is vertical farming?
Vertical farming is an indoor growing method where crops are grown in vertically stacked layers. It uses artificial lighting and advanced climate control tools to create consistent conditions year-round.
This approach offers growers full control over light, temperature, humidity, airflow, and nutrient delivery. As a result, vertical farms can support reliable, predictable plant production at scale, regardless of what the weather looks like outside.
Benefits of vertical farming
Vertical farming supports a wide range of use cases and offers several core benefits, such as:
• enabling growers to produce high-quality seed-to-harvest and starter plants in stable, fully controllable growing conditions
• supporting crops that cannot be produced consistently in colder climates
• reducing the distance between production and consumption – vertical farms can be built close to processing, retail, and distribution sites, lowering food-related carbon emissions
• using less land than open-field farming. Vertical farms can be developed inside warehouses or unused urban spaces
Although vertical farming offers increased control, it requires investment, with specialised equipment and infrastructure needed for lighting, cooling, and automation. As with any production method, certain crops are better suited to the system than others.
What is Controlled Environment Agriculture?
Both glasshouse and vertical farming are a form of controlled environment agriculture (CEA). CEA is a technology-based approach to plant production that aims to optimise growing conditions and resource use. In many environments, traditional CEA systems such as glasshouses still depend on external climate patterns and can be reactive.
Intelligent Growth Solutions takes this further with Total Controlled Environment Agriculture (TCEA). TCEA provides complete and repeatable control over all environmental variables, supporting consistent plant outcomes in a wide range of locations. It is suited to areas where open-field or glasshouse production is limited by climate, land availability, or water access, but can be used in tandem with glasshouse production.
How glasshouses and vertical farms can work together
Glasshouse farming and vertical farming are not competing systems. They meet different needs and can operate together to create a more comprehensive growing strategy. Many growers are now exploring hybrid approaches that combine the strengths of both.
Glasshouses provide natural light and space, making them efficient for crops with larger canopies or long growth cycles. Vertical farms offer precision for crops that benefit from controlled conditions or require dependable uniformity.
Used together, these systems can support improved throughput, reduced supply risk, and more consistent production. A hybrid model also allows growers to optimise land usage and build greater resilience into their operations instead of just relying on the one method of growth.
Using vertical farming to grow starter plants
A vertical farm can support a glasshouse by producing high-quality starter plants, where crops start life in a vertical farm before finishing their growth cycle in a glasshouse. This approach offers several advantages:
• healthier, uniform plants grown free from pests and disease in a controlled environment
• reduced transportation requirements by growing starter plants locally
• consistent, predictable growth cycles which run throughout the year
• higher yield and additional annual crop cycles due to reduced variability at the early stages of growth
• reduced reliance on imported plants, lowering exposure to supply chain fluctuations and added costs, strengthening operational stability
Introducing IGS Growth Towers
IGS’ vertical farming technology comes in the form of Growth Towers, which come in 6, 9, or 12 metre variants and are controlled via remote software. Each tower brings together lighting, power management, automated movement, airflow systems, and nutrient delivery via a single integrated platform.
Trays (each around the size of a snooker table) are stacked vertically and designed to maintain identical growing conditions at every level. These trays form the core of an IGS Growth Tower. The structure simulates a perfect summer's day year-round, producing reliable harvests in any suitable location.
Growth Towers are built to scale. Their modular nature means that additional towers can be added without disrupting operations, allowing producers to expand capacity with confidence.
The system offers:
• multi-spectra lighting controlled on a tray-by-tray basis
• automated and vertically stacked racking
• uniform airflow delivered to each tray
• integrated nutrition and irrigation management
This combination supports precision growing at commercial scale, offering consistency that more traditional growing environments cannot always provide.
Combining the best of both worlds
Modern agriculture benefits from a mix of approaches. Vertical farming does not replace glasshouse production. Instead, it supports growers who want to enhance control, improve reliability, and strengthen their supply chain. A hybrid model can reduce risk and support a wider crop range, helping growers work toward greater resilience and improved outputs.
Glasshouse farming remains an effective option for crops that benefit from natural light, while vertical farming can support both dependable starter production and efficient leafy green cultivation. Combined, they provide growers with a flexible, future-ready strategy.
Download our hybrid growing guide to find out more about how vertical farming can complement more traditional agricultural systems, helping growers to future-proof their operations and unlock additional revenue streams.
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