Wolhusen Tropical House

The Tropenhaus Wolhusen is a greenhouse and a breeding facility in the Swiss municipality of Wolhusen ( Canton of Lucerne ). In the extensive, publicly accessible facility of the tropical house, heat-loving fish and plants are bred in a tropical climate. The heat is used from the waste heat from the Transitgas AG compressor station.

In the Tropenhaus Wolhusen there is an exhibition of tropical plants and next to it a 5300 m² greenhouse for the production of exotic fruits such as B. papaya.

location

The tropical house is located outside the village of Wolhusen on the Hiltenberg, a hill near the hospital.

Water and energy supply

The rainwater that is collected from the roofs of the systems feeds the water supply for the house and the production facility. Transitgas AG in Wolhusen supplies the waste heat from the compressor station to the Wolhusen hospital and the tropical house.

history

The tropical house and production facility were first built in 1999 as a test facility in neighboring Ruswil and were already fed there with the waste heat from the natural gas compressor station. After 2008 the company was relocated to Wolhusen. The current main shareholder of Tropenhaus Wolhusen AG, founded in 2007, has been Coop Switzerland since 2012 . Operations ceased on June 23, 2019. Coop sold the systems for 1 franc.

breed

Tropical plants

An annual production of 20 to 40 tons of bananas , papaya , mangoes , dwarf bananas , guavas , mangosteen , pineapples , lemongrass and kumquat is planned for the greenhouse . In addition, various spices such as ginger , chilli , vanilla and pepper are grown. The fruits and spices are sold and processed directly into drinks and meals in the restaurant.