ISHS Acta Horticulturae 710: International Symposium on Greenhouses, Environmental Controls and In-house Mechanization for Crop Production in the Tropics and Sub-Tropics
CONTROLLING ENVIRONMENT FOR TISSUE CULTURED PLANTS IN DESERT AREAS |
| Author: | N.S. Al-Khalifa |
| Keywords: | greenhouse, date palms, in vitro culture, zinc roofing |
| Abstract:
Tissue cultured plants require intensive care at the transferring stage from the laboratory to the controlled greenhouse especially in the extreme environmental conditions, such as those of desert areas. The hardening phase of in vitro produced plantlets needs special attention, and different types of plant growing structures are invariably used. The traditional designs of the controlled greenhouse and nursing benches are of high cost and were designed on international scales. Adjusting such designs to suit the local desert climatic conditions were tried and results evaluated. Temperature, light intensity and relative humidity were considered as major environmental parameters. Installation cost, running cost and survival rate of plantlets were considered as economical parameters of the modified designs. The major modifications proposed were the use of insulated corrugated zinc sheet roofing instead of the costly fiberglass and the use of a desert cooler instead of fan and pad. In the extremely hot months, the new system effectively controlled the temperature and relative humidity with less energy and cost. In cooler months, the supplemented lights provided adequate light and heat and the insulated roof prevented further loss of heat. | |
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