Innovator Spotlight:
White Lion Holdings
Montagu, South Africa
Innovator Spotlight:
Located on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa, just a short drive to False Bay, White Lion Holdings has made a global name for itself as a leader in licensed, medical cannabis cultivation. Their expertise extends to half of all commercial scale cannabis farms in South Africa. With more than 50 years of combined experience, the team has extensive experience in lab testing, seed banking, indoor cannabis growing operations and cannabis farming across the globe, including Amsterdam, the United States, Lesotho, and Australia. White Lion prides itself in having perfected genetic breeding and cloning where Fluence’s RAZR Modular LEDs are employed during the vegetative phase. Fluence LEDs are trusted throughout the growing process to yield more consistent and higher quality crops. VYPR 3p is used in the Mother Room and in Van Zaal’s high-tech greenhouse to provide supplemental lighting.
Project Overview
| Cultivator Name: | Cornel van der Watt, White Lion Holdings |
| Location: | Montagu, South Africa |
| Lighting schedule: | 12 hr (Flower) 18hr (Clone/VEG) |
| Crop: | Cannabis High THC High CBD 1 to 1 CBD/THC ratio Variant |
| Fluence Fixture: | VYPR 3p • Light intensity: 250 µmols: • Spectra: R3 RAZR M •Light intensity: 200-300 µmols |
| Type of Facility: | Greenhouse (Flower – VYPR 3p) Indoor (Mother – VYPR 3p) Indoor (Clone and VEG – RAZR M) |
| Regional DLI: | 15 mols/m2/day (June/July – winter months) 45 mols/m2/day (Dec/Jan – summer months) |
| Results: | • Energy savings are up 40% compared to conventional legacy lighting • Increase in uniformity and successful targeting of supplementary lighting for the desired regions • Works well within the power limits of unreliable energy supply • Early results are positive and encouraging • Flower – better bud quality, bigger & denser • Clone – reduced cycle times and improved rooting; achieving quality rooting in 7 to 8 days |
Challenges
White Lion Holdings’ RETROFIT GoalsEnhancing year-round Cannabis production with a refined lighting strategy
With the known challenges of an unreliable power grid and the need for more consistent lighting performance, Fluence’s Horticulture Services team worked closely with van der Watt to retrofit his greenhouse supplemental lighting to increase light levels with less energy inputs and HVAC costs while providing more consistent year-round production. Additionally, White Lion sought an overall improvement in yield, quality, uniformity, and supplemental light in the lower regional DLI of the winter months, while minimizing shading. Lastly, during genetic breeding and cloning cultivating phases, White Lion sought to reduce cycle times and expedite the rooting time to increase production further.
Serving half of South Africa’s commercial cannabis farms
With Fluence LEDs, energy savings at the White Lion facility are up 40% compared to conventional legacy lighting. This is especially crucial in times of fluctuating energy costs. Furthermore, the expert growers at White Lion have noted an increase in uniformity and DLI consistency. Fluence LEDs are working well within the limitations of the regional power supply, and early results are both encouraging and positive.
In regards to crop and flower, the White Lion experts are reporting better bud quality with bigger and denser morphology. Fluence LEDs have also reduced the cycle times of clones. Improved rooting is achieved in 7 to 8 days, which allows for more production.
40% Energy Savings
Increase in uniformity & quality
reduced cycle times
