Tag Archives: greenhouse

507–515 S. Rakutko, A. Avotiņš, I. Alsina and K. Berzina
New assessment tool for artificial plant lighting: case of tomato (Lycopersicon Esculentum Mill.)
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New assessment tool for artificial plant lighting: case of tomato (Lycopersicon Esculentum Mill.)

S. Rakutko¹, A. Avotiņš², I. Alsina³ and K. Berzina²

¹Federal Scientific Agroengineering Center VIM, branch in Saint Petersburg, Tyarlevo, Pushkinsky distr., RU196625 St. Petersburg, Russia
²Riga Technical University, Faculty of Power and Electrical Engineering, Kalku street 1, LV-1658 Riga, Latvia
³Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Institute of Plant and Soil Science, Liela street 2, LV-3001 Jelgava, Latvia

Abstract:

Growing crops under artificial conditions need a very favourable environment, especially the spectral composition of radiation influencing the plant biometry greatly. The study objective was to find how to assess the closeness of real growing conditions to the optimal ones using a single coefficient, which would reflect several time dependencies of individual growth indicators. The plant growth friendliness factor (KG)was proposed for this purpose. Tomato transplants (Lycopersicon Esculentum Mill., ‘Polonaise F1’) were grown in a peat substrate under two lighting systems with different light quality.One system consisted of eight fluorescent lamps OSRAM L58W / 840 LUMILUX Cool White and eight lamps L58W / 77 FLUORA mounted on the standard frame, alternating the lamp types (Type I spectrum).In the other lighting system, the PCB Star LEDs with wavelengths of red 630 nm and far-red 735 nm were added(Type II spectrum). The irradiance level was maintained at 140 μmol m-2 s-1, the photoperiod was 16 h. The ratio of long-wave flux to the total flux KL was calculated for these lighting systems (0.37 rel.units for Type I spectrum and 0.50 rel.units for Type II spectrum) and KG factor was determined by the proposed formula. The value of KG was found to be twice as small for Type I spectrum than for Type II spectrum. The significant difference in biometric parameters of tomato transplants grown under Type I and Type II spectra was revealed. The plants grown in the environment characterized by higher KG, were higher; they had more significant wet mass and stem neck diameter.

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2026-2036 I.Y. El Masri, J. Rizkallah and Y.N. Sassine
Effects of Dormex (Hydrogen Cyanamide) on the performance of three seedless table grape cultivars grown under greenhouse or open-field conditions
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Effects of Dormex (Hydrogen Cyanamide) on the performance of three seedless table grape cultivars grown under greenhouse or open-field conditions

I.Y. El Masri¹*, J. Rizkallah² and Y.N. Sassine³

¹University of Forestry, 10 Kliment Ohridski Blvd., BG1797 Sofia, Bulgaria
²Department of Food Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon
³Department of Plant Production, Faculty of Agriculture, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon
*Correspondence: israa.elmasri@st.ul.edu.lb

Abstract:

Greenhouse cultivation of table grapes is still limited to some experimental trials at Lebanese coast. One major constraint facing this type of cultivation is the lack of enough chilling hours causing irregular bud-break and yield reductions. Dormex, with Hydrogen Cyanamide as active ingredient, is an effective mean for dormancy release adopted in warm winter regions. The work investigated separate and combined effects of two factors: greenhouse cultivation and Dormex application on vine buds (following winter pruning) on three-year old seedless cultivars (ARRA15, ARRA18, and ARRA19). Control consisted of non-treated plants grown in open-field. Results showed that Dormex application under greenhouse induced budburst uniformity, increased budburst percent (by 60%), number of flowers and fruits per shoot (by 83%) and vine productivity (by 90%) in all cultivars compared to control. Bud formation was increased under greenhouse and was reduced by Dormex treatment. Under greenhouse, elongation of current season shoots was delayed and shoot length was reduced in treated plants, harvest was earlier by 7, 14, and 30 days in non-treated plants of ARRA18, ARRA19 and ARRA15 respectively and full fruit set (100%) occurred for all plants. Dry weight of shoots was improved by Dormex application in both cultivation systems. All ARRA cultivars responded similarly to experimental factors except ARRA 19 under greenhouse where shoot length was enhanced in all plants while bud formation only in treated plants. Finally, treating vine by Dormex under greenhouse was found as efficient tool to improve bud break and advance harvest under the specific Lebanese coastal conditions.

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239–248 L. Leso, W. Morshed, L. Conti and M. Barbari
Evaluating thermal performance of experimental building solutions designed for livestock housing: the effect of greenery systems
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Evaluating thermal performance of experimental building solutions designed for livestock housing: the effect of greenery systems

L. Leso, W. Morshed, L. Conti and M. Barbari*

University of Firenze, Department of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Systems, Via San Bonaventura, 13, IT50145 Firenze, Italy
*Correspondence: matteo.barbari@unifi.it

Abstract:

The thermal performance of a greenhouse-type building provided with a living plant canopy was evaluated in Northern Italy during summer. Four reduced scale buildings with different types of covering were tested. The first type was the reproduction of a gable roof covered with 40 mm-thick sandwich panels (SAND), a widespread solution for dairy barns in temperate climates, used as control. Two roofs were reproductions of a Venlo-type greenhouse covered with a 0.2 mm-thick transparent EVA film equipped with either a reflective shading screen with 70% shading level (TRA+SHA) or with a living plant canopy (TRA+PLA). The last type of roof consisted of the living plant canopy alone (PLA). Plant canopies were made up of climbing plants (Trachelospermum jasminoides) with an average LAI of 1.39 m2 m-2.
Data were analysed with mixed linear models for repeated measures. Fixed effects tested were roof type and the interaction of roof type and time of the day. Internal temperature in TRA+SHA (22.60 °C) was higher than PLA (21.28 °C; p > 0.001), SAND (21.53 °C; p = 0.026) and TRA+PLA (21.68 °C; p = 0.036), with no significant differences among the latter three. Differences were larger during the hottest hours of the day (from 09:00 till 17:00) while, during the night, internal temperature did not differ among types of roof.
Results indicate that greenhouse-type buildings with conventional shading systems may not be adequate for housing livestock in warm climates. However, the employment of greenery systems such as a plant canopy may effectively reduce internal temperature. Further research is deserved to develop suitable building solution for livestock farming.

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