Production of leafy greens in a controlled environment has many advantages in comparison to greenhouses and open-field production. Along with being independent of weather, controlled environments allow for easier pest prevention and crop customization. The use of plant factories has increased in the last years, both for research and commercial production.
It is very well known that light intensity and light quality can affect plant growth. Increasing the photon flux density can result in higher biomass, better plant quality and morphology, increased secondary metabolites, and shortened production cycles. One challenge, especially for vertical farm operators, is to achieve their quality and quantity goals. Coloration is a good quality indicator, especially for red lettuce varieties. Achieving an adequate amount of anthocyanins (water-soluble plant pigments that occur in plants and give flowers and fruits an intense red, purple or blue color) and increasing yield is easier with the right growth recipes.
In OSRAM’s Smart Farming Lab, a fully controllable climate chamber, they are investigating a solution for the grower’s challenges. Their latest research tool, the Phytofy RL, helps them to carry out tests under different light conditions.
The objective of this study was to show how agile the Phytofy RL can be when used in the broad field of plant growth recipe research, with many diverse topics, e.g. how to improve coloration and how to affect biomass production for the red lettuce variety Lactuca sativa ˈDiablotiˈ (Enza Zaden).
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For more information:
Osram
www.osram-group.com