Research Accomplishment Reports 2010

Developing and Integrating Components for Commercial Greenhouse Production System

R. Geneve
Department of Horticulture

G. Duncan, R.G. Anderson, R. Geneve, J. Buxton
Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

 

Non-Technical Summary

Greenhouse production, often called Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA), is a high cost system for high-value crop production. Technologies and methodologies continually need to be developed to maximize crop productin in controlled environment agriculture. This project develops and evaluates technologies that optimize controlled environment agriculture production.

Project Description

Research from this project has been disseminated through the multi-state research project titled Developing and Integrating Components for Commercial Greenhouse Production System. It was also communicated at regional nursery and greenhouse conferences and internationally at the GreenSys conference in Quebec, Canada in 2009.Amy Fulcher received her Ph.D. partially from data generated through this project.

Impact

A photosynthesis-based irrigation system was developed for greenhouse and nursery crop irrigation management that reduced water use during production. Photosynthetic rates remained near maximum over a wide range of substrate moisture contents until substrate moisture reached a critical value. A sigmoidal equation best represented the relationship between photosynthetic rate and substrate moisture content and led to an irrigation model. The model as proven effective in reducing water use in both greenhouse and nursery crops.

Publications

Steele, T., A. Fulcher, R. Gates and R.L. Geneve. 2009. Designing a growth chamber to monitor transpiration. Proceedings of Southern Nursery Association Research Conference 54:111-114.

Fulcher, A. and R.L. Geneve. 2009. Cornus, gas exchange, and drought. Proceedings of Southern Nursery Association Research Conference 54:22-27.

Fulcher, A., R.L. Geneve, J. Buxton, and R. Gates. 2008. The Relationship between photosynthetic activity, container moisture and growth in Hibiscus rosa-sinensis L. Proceedings of Southern Nursery Association Research Conference 53:549-552.

Fulcher, A., T. Steele, E. Wilkerson, R.L. Geneve, and R. S. Gates. 2010. Using transpiration chambers to detect initial transpiration in cuttings and quantify transpiration in seedlings. Acta Hort.