Vegetables &
Greenhouse
Horticulture

Asai Nursery is exploring the potential of greenhouse horticulture, primarily focusing on cherry tomatoes.

Our business primarily focuses on greenhouse horticulture, particularly centered around cherry tomatoes. By adopting or developing IoT facilities and technologies that control the environment and visualize plant growth, we are committed to minimizing input (such as raw materials and energy) and maximizing output (harvest quantity and quality).
Insights and challenges we gather each year are logically evaluated and analyzed by all team members, and then systematized into reproducible expertise. The accumulated knowledge is utilized for providing technical guidance to affiliated companies, supporting businesses, and establishing new facilities.
In the future, we aim to leverage the expertise gained to date to expand into crops other than tomatoes and venture into developing new technologies.

Initiatives in our own Fields

The most crucial aspect of crop production is creating an optimal environment for plant growth.
Plants sustain life through photosynthesis, requiring 'light,' 'water,' and 'carbon dioxide.'
At Asai Nursery, we employ various technologies to enhance the activity of these elements, working towards optimal plant growth.

Features of
Tomato
Cultivation

Environmental Control System

We have implemented a system that quantifies the environment within the fields. This system includes features such as automatic window opening and closing to achieve the ideal temperature and also enables the appropriate amount of irrigation to be performed at the right times.

Visualization of Photosynthesis

We estimate the photosynthesis rate of plants based on the dynamics of carbon dioxide near the plant body. This enables assessment of the invisible activity of plants, allowing for in-depth analysis down to the level of events occurring within the plant body.

Visualization of Growth Status

To accurately understand the growth status, we conduct weekly measurements and quantification of various parts of the plant body. This process allows us to analyze foundational information crucial for optimizing daily management.

Introduction of Lets Grow

This is a system that allows remote centralized management of environmental conditions and observation of cultivation status across multiple locations. It enables easy comparison among different sites and is being considered for applications such as standardizing management practices.

Introduction of Supplemental LED Lighting

To supplement the insufficient amount of sunlight, LED lights have been introduced among the leaves. Through interstitial lighting, we are currently demonstrating improved photosynthetic efficiency and enhanced profitability.

As a result of these advanced initiatives, achieving stable,
long-term multi-tiered cultivation has become possible.

Cherry tomatoes

Harvest of 40 tiers.

Medium tomatoes

Harvest of 35 tiers.

Large tomatoes

Harvest of 30 tiers.

*A 30 cm seedling grows up to 15 m in height within one year.

Introducing our own Produced Tomatoes.

Fully ripened cherry tomatoes

Aiming for the world's most delicious, ultimate tomato!

Fruit-like sweetness.

Balanced acidity.

Rich savory flavor.

Cluster cherry tomatoes - 'Ureshino'

Sweet and visually appealing cluster-picked tomatoes!

Vivid and intense deep red color.

Low acidity with a sweet taste.

Cluster contributes to prolonged freshness.

Tappuriko

Small-sized but rich in lycopene - high-lycopene cherry tomatoes!

Abundant in lycopene.

Small-sized and uniformly red.

Balanced sweetness and acidity.

Hagukumi-tomatos

Nurturing the hearts, bodies, and futures of children!

Intense sweetness.

Juicy flesh.

Easy-to-eat snack type.

Medi-tomatoes

Enjoy a savory, sweet, and juicy experience with medium-sized tomatoes!

Vivid crimson red color.

Intense richness.

Delicious both raw and cooked.

Initiatives in External Fields

Strawberries, which follow tomatoes in terms of domestic vegetable production value, have several unknown aspects regarding their growth characteristics and responses to the environment.
There are various challenges in the cultivation and distribution fields.
At Asai Nursery, leveraging the expertise gained in tomato cultivation, we are collaborating with researchers,
producers, and businesses nationwide.
We aim to establish unprecedented cultivation techniques and production systems for strawberries.

Features of
Strawberry
Cultivation

Standardizing the production of high-sugar-content strawberries

The sugar content of strawberry, which greatly affects its 'deliciousness', varies significantly depending on the variety, environment, and cultivation method. Even within the same variety, it can differ significantly based on the growth conditions. Through various experiments and measurements, we aim to analyze and organize the factors contributing to sugar content. Our goal is to develop a technology that enables stable harvesting of high-sugar content strawberries.

Demonstration of Year-round Cultivation for both Seasonal and Everbearing Strawberries

We are working on continuous summer flowering and increased sugar content in seasonal strawberries that flower according to day length changes (seasonal), as well as continuous winter flowering and increased yield in everbearing strawberries that flower irrespective of day length changes. Additionally, we are conducting trials for extending the cultivation period using online resources and demonstrating the cultivation of overseas everbearing varieties.

Development of Standards and Packaging to Reduce Labor Hours and Environmental Impact

We aim to develop low labor-intensive standards replacing conventional standards, freshness preservation technologies for shipping via sea transport, and low environmental impact packaging alternatives to plastics.

Development and Validation of Cultivation Systems to Enhance Production Efficiency

We plan to conduct demonstrations of soilless cultivation, compare various growing media, and implement horizontal multi-planting systems like slide benches. Utilizing the data obtained from these trials, we aim to develop cultivation systems that enhance production efficiency by employing vertical farming and multi-tiered cultivation.

Demonstration of Facilities and Production Techniques Suitable for Site-specific Conditions

We aim to develop production techniques suitable for site-specific conditions by utilizing resources such as waste heat/CO2 in cultivation within factory premises, cultivation in small-scale closed houses, and container cultivation using artificial lighting. This includes resource utilization and the development of production techniques suitable for specific locations.

We aim to pioneer strawberry cultivation that goes beyond the ordinary by anticipating overseas exports through variety development, technological material development to enhance quality and productivity, and distribution development.