From climate control to plant control
Source: HD.com
From climate control to plant control Greenhouse cultivation has become increasingly advanced over the last decades. Growers today have access to detailed environmental data and control systems that manage temperature, humidity, CO₂, and lighting with remarkable precision.
Intelligent control systems added the ability to optimize lighting strategies based on factors such as weather forecasts, electricity prices, and Daily Light Integral (DLI) targets. Chlorophyll fluorescence as plant feedback Plant feedback and chlorophyll fluorescence were discussed at GreenTech 2026, reflecting growing interest in technologies that provide direct insight into crop performance.
Technologies such as Heliospectra's biofeedback sensor, helioSENSE, are helping make this transition possible by bringing fluorescence-based plant feedback into commercial greenhouse environments, enabling growers to integrate plant signals into daily decision-making. "Photo Red continues to present opportunities for meaningful development" LED lighting could improve the weight and sweetness of greenhouse watermelon "Top growers no longer trust wattage for plant lighting" Using the correct light measurements to predict plant growth New light barriers prevent whiteflies and thrips from entering greenhouses "UVB treatment is a promising approach for improving the nutritional quality of the plant" Related Articles From climate control to plant control "Vertical farming is always looking for efficiency, specific spectra and multi-channel control" Optical material selection remains key consideration in lighting Are your LEDs ready for the future?
Why this matters: For operators, this is a water-management story. The useful signal is that direct substrate measurements can help cut drain loss materially without giving up yield or fruit quality, which is exactly the kind of controllable efficiency gain a facility can build on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does substrate sensing matter in free-drain strawberry systems?
Because drain percentage tells a grower what already happened, while substrate moisture and EC data show root-zone conditions directly. That makes it easier to cut water loss without guessing.
What is the operator takeaway from this trial?
If the thresholds are understood well enough, growers can reduce drain water materially while protecting yield and fruit quality, which makes sensing an operational tool instead of a reporting tool.
