February 2021 - 18

CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT AGRICULTURE
Arkansas focusing on crop physiology.
The system features a dimmable feature
that turns the lights down to only the
extent needed, as measured in microns.
Another feature of the system is that it
adapts to the weather as it occurs in realtime,
instead of using fixed thresholds that
are more common in the industry.
" Say a grower is growing lettuce, for
Dim the lights!
By Stephen Kloosterman
Associate Editor
Greenhouses trial new lighting controllers by Candidus
Candidus will conduct the study with
Greenhouse growers in several states
this year are trialing a new way of
fine-tuning one's greenhouse lights for
better crops - whether they be vegetables,
ornamentals or even cannabis.
Athens, Georgia-based startup company
Candidus received a conservation
innovation grant of more than $680,000
grant from the USDA's Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) to study the
use of its adaptive lighting control systems.
The study will work with growers to gauge
the environmental, economic and socioeconomic
benefits to the system.
Light pollution is a common complaint
of greenhouse neighbors, and energy costs
also add up, so the system is meant to help
growers use as little light as possible.
" On-farm trials help producers improve
the health of their operations while
at the same time helping NRCS build
data to show the benefit of innovative
conservation systems and practices applied
on the land, " NRCS Acting Chief Kevin
Norton said in a news release.
the University of Georgia, Michigan
State University Extension Service and
EnSave, a Vermont-based sustainability
solutions company.
Candidus founders Erico Mattos and
Marc van Iersel understand the unique
challenges of controlled environment
agriculture. Mattos received a doctorate
from the University of Georgia in 2013,
and his research has focused on the use
of LED lighting and electronic feedback
mechanisms. Von Iersel has a doctorate
in agronomy from the University of
example, and they have to achieve a DLI
(daily light integral) of 17 moles, " Mattos
said. " The system's going to look into
how many hours they had during the
photoperiod, so let's say they had
16 hours of light a day. And then the
system calculates, if for 16 hours you
maintain light levels at 300 micromoles,
you get a DLI of 17. What happens is, as
the sun comes to the sky, the sky becomes
brighter, so let's say for the first five hours
of the day, you get much more light than
300 micromoles. And the remaining
part of the day - the remaining 11 hours
of the day - your threshold might not
be 300 (micromoles) anymore, because
you've got a lot of light. ... So the system
we make might say, 'Well, you still have
11 hours. If you maintain the lights now
at 200 micromoles, you can achieve your
target DLI.' "
Mattos said the system will continue
re-calculating a light threshold throughout
the day.
" You're never going to provide more
light than you need, " he said.
Jolene
Troubadour
Jackson
Shogun S10
HYBRID ROUND TOMATO
HYBRID TRIPLOID WATERMELON
Produces an attractive large to
extra-large fruit with deep dark
interior on determinate plant.
Suitable for mature green or vine rip
production.
A consistent performer during
hotter months with a unique ability
to hold. Features flavor partnered
with excellent interior quality.
GREEN BEAN
Small compact bush plant. Uniform
pods showing a very dark green
color. Sieve size 3-4.
HYBRID SWEET BELL PEPPER
Extra-large variety with high yield
potential. Produces good size,
smooth and firm with a glossy dark
green color maturing to red fruit.
For information on these and other Clifton Seed
varieties, visit our website: www.cliftonseed.com
or call (800) 231-9359 or (866) 342-5893 to
find a sales representative in your area.
ftil
18 | VegetableGrowersNews.com
http://www.cliftonseed.com http://www.VegetableGrowersNews.com
February 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of February 2021
