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ASABE Announces The Publication Of A New Lighting Standard For Horticulture
November 1, 2018
ST JOSEPH, MICHIGAN— The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) has published the second in a three-part series of standards relating to LED radiation measurements for plant growth and development.
ANSI/ASABE S642, Recommended Methods for Measurement and Testing of LED Products for Plant Growth and Development, describes the methods used for measurement and testing of LED packages, arrays, and modules; LED lamps; and any other LED optical radiation devices.
This standard was preceded by the first document in the series, S640, Quantities and Units of Electromagnetic Radiation for Plants (Photosynthetic Organisms), which presented definitions and descriptions of metrics for plant growth and development. The final standard in the series will focus on performance criteria for LED systems used in horticulture.
ASABE members with standards access and those with site-license privileges can access the full-text of the standard by electronic download within the next few weeks. Location for the download is on the ASABE online Technical Library at: elibrary.asabe.org. Others can obtain a copy for a fee directly from the library or by contacting ASABE headquarters at OrderStandard@asabe.org.
ASABE is recognized worldwide as a standards developing organization for food, agricultural, and biological systems, with more than 260 standards currently in publication. Conformance to ASABE standards is voluntary, except where required by state, provincial, or other governmental requirements, and the documents are developed by consensus in accordance with procedures approved by the American National Standards Institute.
For information on this or any other ASABE standard, contact Scott Cedarquist at 269-932-7031, cedarq@asabe.org.
A current listing of all ASABE standards projects can be found on the ASABE web site at www.asabe.org/projects.
ASABE is an international scientific and educational organization dedicated to the advancement of engineering applicable to agricultural, food, and biological systems.
Further information on the Society can be obtained by contacting ASABE at (269) 429-0300, emailing hq@asabe.org or visiting www.asabe.org/.
Weird New Fruits Could Hit Aisles Soon Thanks to Gene-Editing
Supermarkets stocked with peach-flavoured strawberries and seedless tomatoes on horizon, scientists say
Supermarkets stocked with peach-flavored strawberries and seedless tomatoes are on the horizon, scientists say
20 July 2018
A red-fleshed apple of the Redlove hybrid variety. Unusual fruits such as this could soon become more common thanks to use of technologies such as Crispr. Photograph: Bailey-Cooper Photography/Alamy Stock Photo
Smooth or hairy, pungent or tasteless, deep-hued or bright: new versions of old fruits could be hitting the produce aisles as plant experts embrace cutting-edge technology, scientists say.
While researchers have previously produced plants with specific traits through traditional breeding techniques, experts say new technologies such as the gene-editing tool Crispr-Cas9 could be used to bring about changes far more rapidly and efficiently.
It could, they say, potentially open the door to a new range of fruits and vegetables that look, taste and feel very different to those we are used to.
Gene-editing is already being used by scientists to change the characteristics of food. One such endeavor used Crispr to make mushrooms that don’t brown, while a team in Spain has been using the approach to try to produce wheat that can be eaten by people with coeliac disease. Still, others are looking at using gene-editing to give crops resistance to particular environmental problems or pathogens.
Earlier this year, biotech firm Monsanto invested $125m in a new gene-editing company called Pairwise that reportedly has goals such as sweeter-tasting strawberries, while scientists in Japan have used the technique to produce seedless tomatoes. Another team have been using Crispr to change the architecture of tomato plant branches and the spacing of fruit.
nside a lab in Norwich where researchers from a startup called Tropic Biosciences are using Crispr to create a better banana. Photograph: Tatum Reid/Tropic Biosciences
Among the genes flagged in the new study in the journal Trends in Plant Science are those behind the production of a family of substances known as MYBs, which are among the proteins that control whether other genes are switched on or off.
“MYBs are great targets because they are central to several consumer traits or features like colour, flavour [and] texture,” said Andrew Allan, a co-author of the review from the University of Auckland whose own projects include working on red-fleshed apples and changing the colour of kiwi fruits. “Russet skin in apple and pear [is linked to MYBs]. Hairs on peaches but not nectarines – another type of MYB.”
Dr Richard Harrison, head of genetics, genomics and breeding at the horticultural organisation NIAB EMR, who was not involved in the article, said tweaking MYB genes or the way such genes are themselves controlled was a fruitful approach.
“For fruits,” he said, “MYB genes have long been known to be associated with expression of molecules such as anthocyanin, a red-coloured compound that gives strawberries or blood-red oranges their colour. “Increasingly, MYBs are being implicated in the production of other important compounds, hence the interest in this family of genes that are conserved between many plant species.”
Gene-editing of MYB genes and other genes could bring a host of benefits, Harrison said, adding: “There is a large opportunity to improve the nutritional profile of fruits and vegetables in the future using gene-editing technology, as well as other techniques.” Such techniques, he said, introduce the same sort of DNA changes as plant breeders have introduced by artificially selecting traits that cropped up through spontaneous DNA mutation – but much faster.
Hybrid purple raspberries of the Glen Coe variety. Crispr may make such specimens more common. Photograph: PR/Suttons
“Red-fleshed apples developed through conventional breeding have taken decades to even come close to market acceptability,” he said, “due to the multiple rounds of breeding and selection that have had to occur to take the naturally occurring red-fleshed gene variant from a wild species of apple and introduce it into a commercially acceptable variety.
“In our normal breeding work, we often see seedlings produced purely from conventional breeding with a range of colour and flavour profiles that simply never make it to the market, such as peach-flavoured strawberries [and] super-dark purpleish strawberries.”
The review is timely: next week the European Court of Justice will announce if or how plants that have been gene-edited using techniques such as Crispr will be regulated, and whether they will be treated like genetically modified plants. The US has already ruled against serious restrictions, provided the changes could have been produced through traditional plant-breeding techniques.
“We are interested in making produce more healthy, sustainable and convenient so that people will eat more produce,” Dr Haven Baker, Pairwise’s chief business officer, said, noting that gene-editing could be used to increase levels of anthocyanins, improve taste, increase shelf life, improve yields, boost disease resistance or even lengthen the season of availability.
Such approaches, said Baker, could not only boost consumers’ nutrient intake, but could also reduce food waste and produce adaptations needed to weather climate change: “We are trying to solve problems that matter to both consumers and the agricultural systems.”
What’s The Best Way To Compare Lighting Efficiency?
Posted on 04/26/2018
What’s The Best Way To Compare Lighting Efficiency?
Written by David Kuack
When choosing horticultural lighting, growers need to consider lighting efficiency and how the lighting will be used.
There is a big difference between lighting efficiency for horticulture and lighting efficiency for consumer use. The difference is in who is receiving the light.
“From a human perspective since the early 20th century there was a number of researchers who studied how sensitive the human eye is to the light wavelengths,” said Eden Dubuc, technology leader at Current, powered by GE. “It was discovered that there are receptors in the eyes that collect blue, red and green light. The human eye is most sensitive to yellowish-green light, around 550 nanometers (nm). The reason that humans are really sensitive to this light is because they need to identify good plants as a source of food.
“This color sensitivity of humans varies depending on gender, age and location on the Earth. In order to standardize light measurement, scientists developed a sensitivity curve called a photopic curve that is based on statistical distribution from the world population.”
Dubuc said that it has only been since the 1970s that research has determined plant sensitivity to color. Plants absorb mostly light energy in the range from 400-700 nm, which is defined as photosynthetically active radiation (PAR).
“If white light, which is broad spectrum, is directed at plants, they appear green,” he said. “Plants absorb most of the red and blue light to activate photosynthesis. If a grower wants to create biomass, then blue and red light are the most sensitive to the plants to convert energy in the plants. Even though the ultraviolet (less than 400 nm) and far red (greater than 700 nm) are less useful to the plants for creating biomass, there are some benefits to other aspects of the plants.”
Determining lighting efficiency
Dubuc said lighting efficiency is related to how much electricity goes into the lighting fixture or luminaire and the amount of energy that comes out.
“If 1 watt of electricity is put into a luminaire and 0.5 watt of light comes out, then there is 0.5 watt of heat generated by the luminaire,” he said. “In some luminaires the energy can also be mechanical energy if there are moving parts. If a luminaire doesn’t use active cooling, there aren’t other ways of losing energy. Active cooling is not used in GE luminaires so the watts energy release is divided by two, a portion goes into light and a portion goes into heat.”
For growers trying to determine which type of lamp to use depends on whether they want a broader spectrum and whether the light will be used to keep the plants in a reproductive or vegetative state. Photos courtesy of Farmbox Greens
Dubuc said the same thing happens to the electricity regardless of whether a grower is using a light emitting diode (LED) or high pressure sodium (HPS) luminaire.
“In a LED the light is mostly in the visible range,” he said. “With HPS there can be a lot of infrared radiation so there is heat radiation from the luminaire that has to be taken into account. Subtracting the amount of watts going into a luminaire from the amount of visible light coming out, everything else is heat, either radiation, convection or conduction.”
In regards to the lighting efficiency of luminaires, Dubuc said most growers are now talking about photon efficacy, which is micromoles per joule.
“Micromoles are the quantity of photons,” he said. “Micromoles per second divided by watts creates micromoles per joule, which is photon efficacy. This is an important value when growers are looking at luminaires. This is how growers can compare the efficiency of the luminaire including the ballast and reflector.
“If lighting manufacturers are talking about micromoles per joule, they are measuring the lighting efficiency the same way. If they are using the units, micromoles per joule, it is well defined.”
Dubuc said if growers are using fluorescent lamps, the efficiency is about 1 micromole per joule.
“For a 400-watt metal halide lamp the efficiency is around 1.3 micromoles per joule,” he said. “For a 400-watt HPS there are 1.65 micromoles per joule. For a 1,000-watt double-ended HPS lamp there are 1.85 micromoles per joule.”
Dubuc said for LEDs the efficiency can vary depending on the light color.
“Our GE pink lights have an average of 2.5 micromoles per joule and our purple can go up to 2.8 micromoles per joule,” he said. “Determining which lamp to use will depend on whether growers want a broader spectrum and if they want the light for the plants to be in a more reproductive or more vegetative state.”
Adjusting light spectrum to optimize growth
Dubuc said prior to the introduction of LEDs the only viable lighting options available to growers were HPS, metal halide and fluorescent luminaires.
“The only difference between HPS and metal halide is that there is a different gas in the tube or bulb,” he said. “When the gas mixture in the glass bulb is activated, then the HPS produces yellowish light. When more mercury methyl gas is introduced into a metal halide bulb, it produces a bluer light.
“There are a few companies that tried to tweak the chemical content in the bulbs to get optimized lighting for plants. But the variation is very limited. When researchers started working with LEDs and phosphor, they were able to create different colors and different mixtures. This is when people realized the potential of playing with the spectrum, with the color. LEDs have the full flexibility to optimize the growth of plants because growers have the ability to tweak the spectrum.”
Dubuc said changing the spectrum may change the photon efficacy.
“With white light the spectrum is broader and a broad spectrum means phosphor has been added,” he said. “When more phosphor is added then efficacy is lost. When only blue and red LEDs are used together there is no phosphor in the system. There are currently two efficient LED compounds on the market. InGaN (blue light with peak efficacy at 450 nm) and AllnGaP (red light at peak efficacy at 660 nm) are the most efficient wavelengths for LED technology.”
The ratio of red to blue light impacts the effect on plant growth.
“GE LEDs offer three ratios of red to blue light,” Dubuc said. “We call these reproductive (6:1), vegetative (1:1) and balanced (3:1). The 3:1 ratio has three times more red light energy than blue light energy. If a grower wants the plants to elongate, then more red light is used. Plants exposed to more red light will grow faster and bigger, but will be more fragile.
“Blue energy controls the structure of the plants. If a 1:1 ratio with as much blue as red is used, plants will be really strong, but short and compact. If growers alter the ratio of blue to red, they can control the structure or morphology of the plants.”
Depending on what a grower is trying to accomplish with the LEDs will determine the ratio of red to blue light.
By altering the ratio of blue to red light, growers can control the plant morphology. A 1:1 ratio of blue to red light will produce strong, compact plants.
“Usually light distributors like Hort Americas will guide growers on what type of light to choose,” he said. “GE creates the fixture based on what the growers and plant researchers are asking for. GE’s expertise is to make good luminaires and conduct the research with universities. Hort Americas staff can properly guide the growers as to what spectrum is best for their crops. These spectrums are based on the many experiments conducted by university researchers and commercial growers.
“Some growers prefer using a broader spectrum (white or pink) to purple light because white light is human-friendly. When choosing lights, it has to be taken into consideration whether there will be humans working in the environment. However, using a broader spectrum impacts the efficacy of generating biomass.”
David Kuack is a freelance technical writer in Fort Worth, Texas; dkuack@gmail.com.
Tagged
Artificial Lighting, GE, GE LEDs, Greenhouse LED, LED Grow Lights
Fertinnowa Develops Water Book
Fertinnowa Develops Water Book
The Fertigation Bible has been prepared to provide useful practical information to the horticultural sector of the diverse technologies available for all aspects of fertigation within the EU. The various stages of the “fertigation process” are shown in the schematic representation below. The Fertigation Bible contains descriptions of the technologies related to these stages.
Each technology is described in terms of:
- Purpose/aim of the technology
- Regions, crops and cropping systems where it is used
- Working principle of operation
- Operational conditions
- Cost data
- Benefits for the grower – advantages and disadvantages
- Technological, socio-economic and regulatory bottlenecks and limitations
- Techniques resulting from this technology
- Supporting systems required
- Development, i.e. if it is in a research or development stage, or has been commercialized
- Who provides the technology
A total of 125 such technology descriptions are provided.
Considerable effort was made to ensure that the Fertigation Bible is as comprehensive as possible. Various members of the FERTINNOWA project, from 23 organisations from 10 countries, have worked on this document to describe the most commonly-used and promising technologies that are commercially available or are expected to be so in the near future.
You can download the Fertigation Bible here.
Publication date: 3/26/2018
Official Opening of The World Horti Center
Official Opening of The World Horti Center
The World Horti Center will have its official Grand Opening on Wednesday, March 7, 2018, in The Netherlands. The World Horti Center will introduce everyone to the concepts, values and core competencies important to their success. Come learn how they plan to create entrepreneurship, research, and education that will allow this innovation center to lead the world of horticulture into the future.
There will be an official opening ceremony that will take place for partners and participants in the World Horti Center (invitation only). Afterwards, the Center will celebrate the World Horti Festival, where companies, industry professionals, and students are welcome.
Contact the World Horti Center for additional information on the Grand Opening.
https://www.worldhorticenter.nl/nl/evenementen/officiele-opening
Career Opportunities for LED Lighting Experts and Urban Agriculture Salespeople!
Career Opportunities for LED Lighting Experts and Urban Agriculture Salespeople!
New Market Manager: Horticultural LED Lighting
Mac & Fulton Talent Partners is looking for an ambitious sales and marketing manager to help launch an LED lighting brand in the horticultural marketplace. This is a well-established lighting company looking to put their resources behind the right sales team.
JOB OFFER:
Market Manager to spearhead the launch of a new brand of LED lights with horticultural applications. The position is located in Milwaukee, WI.
Responsibilities:
- Create overall sales and marketing plans for product lines
- Assess market segments and growth and act accordingly
- Advise senior management about the nuances of the agriculture industry
- Develop price points
- Create distribution channels
- Consistently meet sales goals
- Study industry competitors
- Remain up-to-speed on horticultural technology advancements
Qualifications:
- BA in Business or like subject—preferred
- Experience in horticultural lighting field—preferred
- Sales in horticulture/hydroponics industry—required
- Experience in modern agriculture—required
- Well versed in product development and new market entry—preferred
Please email kentg@mandfconsultants.com or contact me on my mobile 414-412-3729 for more details.
You can also check us out at www.mandfconsultants.com.
Mac & Fulton Talent Partners—A recruiting firm focused on modern gardening—is working with a number of LED lighting product manufacturers in the horticultural marketplace.
About Us
We consider Mac & Fulton Talent Partners the most knowledgeable and attentive recruiting agency in the hydroponics and horticultural markets.
The team at M&F Talent sees a very real societal value in the burgeoning Urban Indoor Farming movement and are most interested in networking with industry professionals.
If you would like to learn more about Mac & Fulton, or would simply like to strike up a synergistic dialogue, Please email kentg@mandfconsultants or contact me on my mobile 414-412-3729 for more details.
You can also check us out at www.mandfconsultants.com
Kent Gruetzmacher
Determining The Potential Benefits of LEDs on Plants
Determining The Potential Benefits of LEDs on Plants
NOVEMBER 20, 2017 | DAVID KUACK
Researchers at Wageningen University in the Netherlands are studying the effects of LED lights on the growth, flowering and fruiting of vegetable and ornamental plants in controlled environments.
Dutch growers who are building new greenhouses or adding new grow lights to their existing operations are comparing high-pressure sodium (HPS) and light emitting diodes (LEDs) when making their decision.
“At the moment there aren’t as many growers making the switch from HPS to LEDs,” said Leo Marcelis, head of the chair group horticulture and product physiology at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. “Most growers who have made the investment in HPS lamps, they’re not just going to replace HPS with LEDs. It’s growers who are starting with a new greenhouse or who are retrofitting an existing greenhouse without lamps who are looking to install LEDs.
“The other growers who are adding LEDs are the ones who already have installed HPS and want to increase the light intensity and are adding LED interlighting. They are combining HPS top lighting with LED interlighting. This is occurring especially with the tall greenhouse vegetable crops like tomatoes. The HPS lamps are installed over the top of the crop and the interlighting LEDs are installed within the canopy.”
Photos courtesy of Leo Marcelis, Wageningen University
Many unanswered questions
With the increased grower interest in LEDs, researchers at the university are focusing more of their studies on the effects of single and combined light wavebands on plant growth, flowering and fruiting.
“Most of the research we are doing on lighting is with LEDs,” Marcelis said. “High-pressure sodium lamps are still the standard for most growers so the lamps are still relevant. But for our research, there is not as much being done with HPS as with LEDs. We are focusing more on LEDs. The opportunities created by LEDs, there are so many questions still unanswered about using LEDs. As growers start to put in new lights they are making the switch to LEDs. We expect more of that to occur in the coming years.”
Focus on controlled environment crops
Marcelis said greenhouse tomatoes are the largest crop in the Netherlands, even bigger than cut flowers such as roses and potted ornamental crops such as orchids.
“Tomato is the most important crop in our research. In the Netherlands, there are about 1,700 hectares of tomatoes in glass houses. About 1/3 of that area is equipped with HPS lamps. There are about 1,200 hectares of sweet peppers in glass houses with only a few hectares equipped with HPS lights. The calculations are such that the economics are not that profitable for sweet pepper and cucumber. It is more economical and profitable to light tomatoes, not sweet peppers and cucumbers. There are more growers starting to grow strawberries in greenhouses who are using LEDs to control the day length. More growers are also using LEDs for assimilation lighting.”
Marcelis said lettuce is another crop that is being studied whether it’s grown in vertical farming setups in warehouse facilities or in greenhouse operations. Roses and phalaenopsis orchids are the most important ornamental crops being studied.
“We currently aren’t doing any projects with cucumbers or sweet peppers using LEDs,” he said. “Since there are not as many growers using lights on these two crops, we are not focusing our research on them, but this could easily change in the coming years.”
Focused on issues important to growers
Marcelis said most of the university’s lighting research projects are on greenhouse produce because that is the area of most economic activity in the Netherlands.
“Vertical farming is attracting a lot of attention,” he said. “We are also conducting research in climate chambers which can have application to vertical farming.
Breeding researchers at Wageningen University are working in cooperation with commercial breeding companies to screen different genotypes to determine any variation under LED lights.
“We are looking at different aspects of lighting, including light spectrum and energy savings. Energy savings is an important issue with the growers so we are doing a lot of research on that. If the light used is more efficient, then there can be energy savings. Talking to the growers, year-round production, fruit quality and energy savings are the issues they’re interested in. If growers can increase production with the same amount of light, then there is an energy savings.
“The majority of lights are used for assimilation. They are primarily used from September through April. The greenhouses are equipped with climate control and the growers are measuring outside radiation. If the outside radiation falls below a designated level, then the lamps are often turned on. The growers typically choose a time frame during the day. From September through April all of the lights are used. After April then the lights might be used during relatively dark days.”
Looking at plant processes
Marcelis said the researchers are doing a lot of studies on photosynthesis and the morphology or architecture of the plants.
“Affecting the morphology impacts the light absorption of plants and the light distribution,” he said. “We feel light distribution is a very important issue where improvements can be made. We also do work with three-dimensional assimilation models. From light absorption, it goes to total growth of the plant as a whole. Another area of research is the distribution of assimilates among the different plant organs.”
Most of Wageningen University’s lighting research is on greenhouse produce because that is the area of most economic activity in the Netherlands.
Marcelis said there is also some preliminary research that indicates plants can be made more resistant to diseases, particularly increasing the resistance of roses to powdery mildew.
“We have done experiments that have indicated that we can improve disease resistance. Flower induction is also very important. It can be done now with controlling photoperiod, but can it be done using different spectra?
“There is also some work being done on the quality of the plants. Is it possible to focus the light on the tomato fruit in order to increase the vitamin C content? Some of the same things can be done with lettuce. We are also starting to look at post-harvest qualities. So we are looking at not only what can be done during cultivation, but also can the post-harvest quality of the fruit be improved. This also includes lengthening the shelf life of lettuce and cut flowers.”
Marcelis said studies are also being conducted in cooperation with commercial breeding companies and breeding researchers at the university.
“One of the projects is screening 40 different genotypes, including commercial cultivars,” he said. “One study is looking at the variation between genotypes under LEDs. The breeders will look at the variation between genotypes and try to determine why the variation is occurring. What parts of the plant are affected? Can breeders predict if varieties will do well or not so well under certain wavebands?
“There are all of these different genotypes. Some do better under white light than a mixture of red and blue. Some genotypes are showing better results under the red and blue light. They all don’t respond similarly. For breeders, it means there is a lot of opportunity and room for improvement. Since the focus is on using LEDs with tomatoes that is where most of the breeding research is being done.”
For more: Leo Marcelis, Wageningen University, Horticulture and Product Physiology Group, Wageningen, The Netherlands; (31) 317-485-675;
leo.marcelis@wur.nl; http://www.hpp.wur.nl
David Kuack is a freelance technical writer in Fort Worth, Texas; dkuack@gmail.com.