ISHS Acta Horticulturae 691: International Conference on Sustainable Greenhouse Systems - Greensys2004
SUPPLEMENTAL LIGHTING IN HIGH-WIRE CUCUMBER PRODUCTION ON RAISED-TROUGHS |
| Authors: | X. Hao, A.P. Papadopoulos |
| Keywords: | lighting, cucumbers, yield, energy use efficiency, high pressure sodium lamps |
| Abstract:
Consumers demand year-round production and supply of high quality produce. However, wintertime greenhouse crop production in northern regions is usually limited due to low solar radiation. A study was conducted over two years to develop a high-wire cucumber production system on raised-troughs with supplemental lighting for year-round production. It was found that the optimum fruit to leaf ratio for the high-wire cucumber grown on raised-troughs was 1:2. Supplemental lighting (44 W PAR, 17 hours per day (average), 2.6 MJ m-2 day-1), increased the fruit production in winter by more than 100%. The supplemental lighting system also provided 60-90% of the heat requirement by double-polyethylene greenhouses in the winter. Energy use efficiency (unit produce per unit of input energy) was higher with supplemental lighting from Nov. to Feb. (4 months). A preliminary economic analysis conducted based on the yield data from this 2-year of study and a preliminary energy analysis indicated that supplemental lighting in high-wire cucumber production may be economically feasible in Ontario, Canada. | |
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