They’re growing chillies and cucumbers, lettuce and strawberries in UHI Orkney’s vertical system – “and herbs that would never normally be found so fresh and tasty in Orkney,” says the latest report in The Orcadian. And now there’s an opportunity to see the system at first hand and give your assessment of what it might mean for Orkney.

Inside a polycrub at the Agronomy and Agriculture Institute, plants in nine towers are fed with nutrients trickling down, pumped up from stage barrels by solar and battery power. The plants are growing well – two or three times as fast as in a normal polytunnel, reports the Institute’s director, Dr Henry Creissen.

“You can grow pretty much anything in this system if you have the space,” he says, pointing out that the towers can be used to grow food that is would otherwise be brought in to Orkney from a distance – and without pesticides. Just about everything, apart from the strawberries, is grown from seed, in an initial wrapping of rock wool.

Researchers at The James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen are collaborating with the Agronomy Institute to find the answer to two key questions – Will systems like this work in practice in Orkney’s diverse communities? And would they be financially viable?

At the workshop there will be an opportunity to see the new hydroponic system in operation, and to hear about other types of vertical farming as well – and then the team want your feedback. How do you think the technology might be deployed for Orkney’s benefit? And if so, what might the practical advantages be? And conversely, do you see any risks?

They will provide tea, coffee and Orkney biscuits, and possibly some Aberdeenshire ones as well. They would like your permission to make an audio-recording of the event, and also if they could take some photos from time to time.

Numbers limited: booking essential. The cost has been kept down to a £5 registration fee.