• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.356-365
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• 2022

Agrivoltaic systems, also called solar sharing, stated from an idea that utilizes sunlight above the light saturation point of crops for power generation using solar panels. The agrivoltaic systems are expected to reduce the incident solar radiation, the consequent surface cooling effect, and evapotranspiration, and bring additional income to farms through solar power generation by combining crops with solar photovoltaics. In this study, to evaluate if agrivoltaic systems are suitable for viticulture, we investigated the microclimatic change, the growth of vines and the characteristics of grape grown under solar panels set by planting lines compared with ones in open vineyards. There was high reduction of wind speed during over-wintering season, and low soil temperature under solar panel compared to those in the open field. There was not significant difference in total carbohydrates and bud burst in bearing mother branches between plots. Despite high content of chlorophyll in vines grown under panels, there is no significant difference in shoot growth of vines, berry weight, cluster weight, total soluble solid content and acidity of berries, and anthocyanin content of berry skins in harvested grapes in vineyards under panels and open vineyards. It was observed that harvesting season was delayed by 7-10 days due to late skin coloration in grapes grown in vineyards under panels compared to ones grown in open vineyards. The results from this study would be used as data required in development of viticulture system under panel in the future and further study for evaluating the influence of agrivoltaic system on production of crops including grapes.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.111 no.4
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• pp.548-556
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• 2022

In this study, basic data were obtained to determine the optimal cultivation method to achieve stable fruiting and yield increase in "Cheonhwang" jujube trees. Accordingly, thefructification, fruit characteristics, and yield according to tree age were analyzed. The mean (and range of) tree height, crown area, stem diameter near the root, clear stem length, number of main branches, and distance between main branches were 235.6 (217.4-253.8) cm, 3.5 (3.1-4.1) m², 5.5 (4.0-7.1) cm, 70.6 (66.2-72.7) cm, 9.7 (8.6-10.5), and 10.4 (7.9-14.2) cm, respectively. Correlationanalysis results indicated that tree age was positively correlated with crown area, stem diameter near the root, and clear stem length but not with the number of main branches. The mean number (and range) of fruit per fruit-bearing mother shoot and tree were 18.3 (16.7-18.3) and 170.7 (157.9-178.3), respectively. Tree age was not significantlycorrelated with fruiting characteristics (i.e., the numbers of fruit-bearing mother shoots per main branch, fruit-bearing shoots per fruit-bearing mother shoot, fruit per fruit-bearing shoot, and fruit per tree). Given that the shape of jujube trees is constantly managed according to the growing area and greenhouse type, the tree growth characteristics were more affected by tree management techniques than by tree age. The mean (and range of) fruit weight, fruit hardness, and soluble solid content were 28.6 (27.7-30.3) g, 29.4 (28.5-30.4) N, and 20.4 (19.3-21.0) °brix, respectively, and these fruit characteristics were not significantly correlated with tree age.The average yield per tree of the 'Cheonhwang' jujube cultivar was 4.9 (4.8-5.0) kg, which was not significantly correlated with tree age.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.163-169
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• 2022

This study was conducted to examine an alternative cultivating method that uses coir substrates in a hydroponically cultured system. Three treatment conditions were applied with one-layer substrate (10 cm height) with a coir chip and dust ratio of 5:5 (Treatment A), two-layer coir substrate (20 cm height) with a coir chip and dust ratio of 5:5 (Treatment B), one-layer coir substrate (15 cm height) with a coir chip and dust ratio of 7:3 (Treatment C). The control condition was a plastic container filled with a coir chip and dust ratio of 5:5. Various criteria were measured and compared between the treatments and the control. The yield of strawberry was smaller in the control than in the treatments. No significant difference in growth characteristic was found in the height treatments of the coir substrates. The net photosynthetic rate of the treatments was 14.68-15.76 µmol CO₂·m^-2·s^-1. This does not show a statistically significant difference. The root activity was better in treatment B and C than in treatment A and the control. The length and width of leaves were measured as 4.04-4.13 cm and 3.26-3.34 cm. These results are not statistically significant. The leaf length and width ratio was 1.27 in the control and 1.24 in the treatments. The findings show that no statistically significant benefit was found when utilizing coir substrates with different height treatments in the hydroponic culture system. However, the harvested fruit per plant weights 72.38 g in treatment A and 48.69 g in treatment C. The number of harvested fruit was least in treatment C in which a coir chip and dust ratio of 7:3 was applied. Therefore, further research is needed to examine how the chip and dust ratio in coir substrate affects growth characteristics.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.822-832
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• 2023

This study investigates the effectiveness of CA (controlled atmosphere) containers in maintaining the freshness of exported melons. The melons were harvested on June 5, 2023, in the Yeongam area of Jeollanam-do, Korea. The CA container was loaded with melon samples packed in an export box. The temperature inside the container was set at 4℃, while the gas composition was set at 5% oxygen, 12% carbon dioxide, and 83% nintrogen. Following two weeks of simulated transportation, quality analysis was conducted at 10℃. The melons were inoculated with spore suspensions, and the decay rate was determined to investigate the effect of the gas composition inside the CA container on suppressing the occurrence of Penicillium oxalicum in melons. The results were compared with a Reefer container set at the same temperature. The samples transported in the CA container exhibited lower weight loss. The melon pulp softening, respiration rate, and ethylene production were slower using the CA container. Moreover, the decay rate during the distribution period in the CA container was lower than in the Reefer container. In contrast, the firmness of melons transported in the Reefer container decreased significantly (from 9.03N to 5.18N) immediately after transportation. The soluble solid content (SSC) of melons transported in the Reefer container also decreased rapidly. The results suggested that the CA container is the optimal export container for maintaining the freshness of melons.