Articles
LIMITATIONS TO THE POTENTIALITIES OF INCREASING PRODUCTION UNDER WEST AND NORTH EUROPEAN CONDITIONS
Every level and changes in temperature, radiation, aircomposition (CO2, O2, water) is possible.
It is obvious that such a structure will cost an enormous amount of money and that in this way horticulture is not a profitable business.
But even under such favourable circumstances it will be very difficult to reach maximum yield during the growing season: The possibility exists that a certain environment creates a plant that cannot give maximum yield later on or becomes very susceptible to plant diseases.
It is clear that we need a quantitative and qualitative model of crop-growth and production.
Connected with a price expectation it then becomes possible to calculate the influence of a certain change in production environment (energy prices, planting date, greenhouse temperature, double glazing). When we look more closely upon the measures a grower can take, we will meet this problem regularly.