Intracanopy lighting strategies to improve green bush bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) compatibility with vertical farming

Now that multi-tiered plant factories with artificial lighting (PFALs) have demonstrated sufficient proof of concept for leafy green and microgreen production; the next challenge is to determine the optimal environment conditions and horticultural management practices required to produce nutrient-dense plant-based protein (PBP) crops within these advanced controlled environment systems (CES). Sole-source lighting within PFALs is energetically and economically expensive, as such, optimizing light distribution through intracanopy lighting could be a key factor in expanding the number of crops compatible with PFAL production. An ideal PBP PFAL crop will have a compact morphology (height, area, volume), be compatible with low-light environments, be self-pollinating, and have a relatively short life cycle. The objectives of this study were to 1) evaluate a selection of green bush bean cultivars (Phaseolus spp.) within a CES to determine which currently available cultivar is most compatible with PFAL production and 2) determine if the addition of intracanopy LED lighting could further improve cultivar compatibility with PFAL systems. The bush bean cultivar “Bronco” was selected after a 40-day flowering and 60-day fruiting trial for its compact morphology and yield (count, fresh weight). Intracanopy LED lighting trials on “Bronco” demonstrated a reduced shoot height (16%), increased bean count (22%), and increased fresh bean weight (17%) relative to plants produced with overhead lighting alone. While intracanopy lighting improved green bush bean compatibility with PFAL production, the additional light applied within the canopy increased the cost of production

Postharvest quality implications of pre-harvest treatments applied to enhance Ambrosia™ apple red blush color at harvest.

Two approaches for enhancing red blush in Ambrosia™ apple were evaluated; 1) reflective row covers, or 2) application of foliar phosphorus-rich sprays, both applied several weeks before anticipated harvest. Two experiments were conducted, the first to evaluate a white reflective row cover versus foliar phosphorus spray and the second to evaluate two types of reflective row cover, one being made of a woven white polyethylene and the other a solid silvered Mylar®. The comparative effect these pre-harvest treatments on at-harvest fruit quality and quality after storage were assessed in both experiments. It was determined that foliar phosphorus sprays or one of the two types of reflective row covers resulted in similar enhancement of red blush colour with no negative effects on at-harvest quality. However, in the first experiment it was found that after 8 months CA storage (1 kPa O2 + 1 kPa CO2 at 0.5 °C), apples from the phosphorus foliar spray treatment developed greasiness and sooty blotch, as compared with either those from the reflective row cover or control treatments. In the second experiment, after 5 months of air storage at 0.5 °C, the apples from the silvered Mylar® reflective row cover treatment developed severe soft scald and soggy breakdown as compared with the control and white reflective row cover treatments which developed lower or very slight incidence in soft scald, respectively, and no soggy breakdown. These results indicate that when pre-harvest treatments are applied to apples, that post-storage quality effects should be evaluated.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

Water-soluble lysine-containing polypeptides. I. The synthesis and characterization of several sequential lysine-glycine polypeptides including a preliminary study of their interaction with DNA

NRC publication: Ye