Energy crisis, but crops can be saved
We are back to talking about higher energy prices in agriculture: after the shutdown of greenhouses for growing flowers, now it's alarm shutdown greenhouses where PDO Genoese basil is grown. Production is being put at risk, but also the survival of many farms, especially due to high utility bills. In fact, this crop is very demanding in terms of temperature: it should not fall below 21°.
One wonders which paths to take given that the energy crisis is expected to last 3 years. Will we go back to cooking with wood fires and eating by candlelight? Irony aside, an immediate, concrete, and documented solution to address the energy crisis in the agricultural sector is to turn to technology that can cope with the conditions that agronomic practices require.
Crop treatments with BioAksxter® formulations allow crops to produce below the minimum threshold of optimal temperatures, thus reducing energy consumption in climate-controlled greenhouses.
This is what the chart below again shows with temperature readings of an experimental basil cultivation in an unheated greenhouse.
We are at an altitude of 600 m and basil transplants (Italian classic and var. Da Vinci) were made on April 24, 2022 and May 28, 2022, respectively.
Minimum temperatures over 123 days (April 24 to August 24) ranged from 5° to 19.4°C with a record change between two values of 6.8°C. The average minimum temperature was 13.64°C.
Despite these temperatures, which were far below the crop's needs, there was no damage to the plants. Growth was regular and production in terms of leaf mass and weight was excellent.
Attention also has to be paid to maximum temperatures, the average of which was 31.8°C with a range of 21.4°C to 37.6°C and a record variation between two values of 9°C. These data are also attributable to heat stress.
Moreover, when evaluating the average maximum and minimum temperatures, a high temperature range between day and night of 18.16°C emerges, a fact normally unfavorable for basil cultivation.
Cultivation was done exclusively using BioAksxter® M31 Agriculture + M32 Horticulture, Floriculture and Nursery. We suggest the use of BioAksxter® M31 + BioAksxter® M32 Photovoltaic Greenhouse, which together constitute an ideal coupling for soil and crop conditions in basil cultivation under low temperatures and light deficiency.
Of course, all this does not only apply to basil, but applies to any type of cultivation, whether protected or open field.
>> Download the pdf on the detection of minimum and maximum temperatures
