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Greek farmers getting innovative, using new technologies to keep up with the increasing demands of the modern world
Tractors equipped with GPS and laptops are appearing alongside sophisticated weather and pest forecast systems
 This ground-breaking, 100-hectare glass greenhouse in the municipality of Alexandreia, Imathia, is warm enough to grow all kinds of vegetables all year round. It also generates electricity that it sells to the Public Power Corporation. Insects pollinate the plants and attack pests, so no harmful chemicals are necessary. Everything is run by computer. Inset: An aerial view of the greenhouse.By Stavros Tzimas & Zoyia Koutalianou - Kathimerini
A computer set up in a shed on the plain of Imathia is connected to humidity and nitrogen sensors in a field of peach trees. When a tree needs water, the sensor picks it up and sends a message to the computer that opens the faucet and waters it. When the sensor detects that the tree needs nutrients, it clicks another switch to release fertilizer. If necessary, it can release food and water together. While that’s going on, the farmer might be sitting in the local cafe, playing backgammon and knocking back a “farmer’s shot” as whisky was called in the good old days when the plain benefited from generous subsidies.
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