Photoperiod and Photosynthetic Photon Flux Influence Growth and Quality of Greenhouse-grown Lettuce

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

`Karlo' and `Rosana', two Boston-type lettuce ( Lactuca sativa L.) cultivars, were subjected to various light treatments in greenhouses equipped with one of two propane heating systems. Photoperiods of 16, 20, 24, or 24 hours for 2 weeks after transplanting and then 16 hours (24–16) and photosynthetic photon flux of 50 or 100 μmol·m –2 ·s –1 provided by supplementary lighting (high-pressure sodium vapor lamps) were compared to natural light during four experiments performed in greenhouses between Sept. 1989 and May 1990. Using supplementary lighting resulted in significant increases in biomass (≤270%), head firmness, and tipburn incidence and decreases in production cycle length (≈30%). Treatment effects were most pronounced during the months when natural-light levels were low. Fresh weights were higher for `Karlo' than `Rosana'; however, `Rosana' was less susceptible to tipburn than `Karlo'. In general, the radiant heating system resulted in earlier crop maturity and a higher incidence of tipburn than the hot-air system.