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The cultivation of crops under simple plastic covered structures is now commonplace in UK horticulture because of its potential to extend growing seasons, control harvests and improve the quality of produce. In recent years advances in technology have allowed the manufacture of novel materials that ‘fine-tune’ the growing environment still further, by manipulating the quantity and wavelength of light reaching the crop.
Much of the international research on modified plastics has been carried out in warm climates and has concentrated on the absorption of UV light to reduce the scorching effects of the sun, to manipulate pest behaviour, and to reduce establishment of certain pathogens. However, in the UK there may be greater benefits from improving transmission of UV light, which could harden the plant cuticle, reduce the trauma of planting out, improve resistance to pests and disease, reduce the need for artificial growth regulators, increase oil content of aromatic plants and improve colour intensity of flowers and foliage. More specifically, the manipulation of the red : far red ratio can provide predictable modification of plant growth, while the manipulation of infra red wavelengths can have a cooling effect in summer, which could improve the quality of certain cut flowers.
Although a limited number of small-scale studies have investigated the potential impacts of this technology on UK crop production, the majority of large-scale work has been carried out on crops common to arid regions. In contrast, the aim of this long-term, large-scale project is to investigate the costs and benefits to the UK horticultural industry of adopting modern plastic technology, by concentrating on crops that are of specific importance to the UK market. This project seeks to clarify the situation by evaluating plastic covers with a broad range of light manipulating properties, determine their benefits to key UK horticultural crops and rapidly transfer that technology to UK growers. In addition, the proposed research will provide direction for more fundamental scientific studies to determine the underlying mechanisms, with a view to further enhancing the beneficial effects of such filters, and aiding in the development of new spectral filters.
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