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Charting The Differences In Plant Growth Between Gardens In The Open And Under Solar Pa, Joe E. Smith

STAR Program Research Presentations

Agrivoltaics is a relatively new arrangement of land use that collocates agriculture and solar photovoltaic panels. Within the context of several ongoing projects testing the practicality of agrivoltaics in the arid climate of southern Arizona, we used a portable photosynthesis analyzer to compare the rates of carbon uptake and water loss in Chiltepin, Jalapño, and Tomato plants grown under solar panels and in the open, as in traditional agriculture. The portable photosyn- thesis analyzer creates a microenvironment around the leaf that regulates temperature, carbon dioxide, humidity, and light to assess plant functions in ambient and arti cial conditions. Two sets …