Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.)
Climate change, with rising temperatures, water crises, and an increased frequency of climate disturbances, poses a threat to the ability of agroecosystems to ensure human access to food by affecting both the quantity and quality of crop production. Currently, there is growing knowledge about the fa...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2024-04-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/7/3095 |
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| author | Aurelia Scarano Teodoro Semeraro Antonio Calisi Roberta Aretano Caterina Rotolo Marcello S. Lenucci Angelo Santino Gabriella Piro Monica De Caroli |
| author_facet | Aurelia Scarano Teodoro Semeraro Antonio Calisi Roberta Aretano Caterina Rotolo Marcello S. Lenucci Angelo Santino Gabriella Piro Monica De Caroli |
| author_sort | Aurelia Scarano |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Climate change, with rising temperatures, water crises, and an increased frequency of climate disturbances, poses a threat to the ability of agroecosystems to ensure human access to food by affecting both the quantity and quality of crop production. Currently, there is growing knowledge about the fact that agrivoltaic systems may represent a direct strategy to cope with climate change driven by carbon dioxide emissions for energy production, preserving the capacity of agroecosystems to maintain food security. The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of environmental conditions generated by photovoltaic (PV) panels for sustaining open-field tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) fruit production under varying water supply regimes. Tomato plants were grown beneath PV panels or in full sunlight. In each scenario, two plots with an equal number of plants were subjected to different irrigation levels: high watering (HW) and low watering (LW). The results showed a lower number of tomato fruit produced grown under the PV panels, with an increased fruit size and water content under a normal water supply. The Brix degrees of the tomato fruits grown under the panel were more comparable to the fruits commercially available on the market than the Brix degree of the fruits grown in open-field sunlight. Thus, our data supported the conclusion that the agrivoltaic system, in the context of climate change with the enduring drought and long-term water scarcity, can be a good adaptation strategy to maintain favorable tomato production compared to the full sunlight conditions. Furthermore, these results can be important for planning breeding programs, since in many cases, the tomato fruits grown in full sunlight were seedless. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T10:49:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e073f498459442bf86a3880be93ff862 |
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| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T10:49:23Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-e073f498459442bf86a3880be93ff8622024-04-12T13:15:41ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172024-04-01147309510.3390/app14073095Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.)Aurelia Scarano0Teodoro Semeraro1Antonio Calisi2Roberta Aretano3Caterina Rotolo4Marcello S. Lenucci5Angelo Santino6Gabriella Piro7Monica De Caroli8Institute of Sciences of Food Production, C.N.R. Unit of Lecce, 73100 Lecce, ItalyResearch Institute on Terrestrial Ecosystems (IRET-URT Lecce), National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Campus Ecotekne, 73100 Lecce, ItalyDepartment of Science and Technological Innovation (DISIT), University of Eastern Piedmont, Viale Michel 11, 15121 Alessandria, ItalyARPA Puglia—Apulian Regional Agency for the Environmental Prevention and Protection, Corso Trieste 27, 70126 Bari, ItalyARPA Puglia—Apulian Regional Agency for the Environmental Prevention and Protection, Corso Trieste 27, 70126 Bari, ItalyDepartment of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, ItalyInstitute of Sciences of Food Production, C.N.R. Unit of Lecce, 73100 Lecce, ItalyDepartment of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, ItalyDepartment of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, Campus Ecotekne, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, ItalyClimate change, with rising temperatures, water crises, and an increased frequency of climate disturbances, poses a threat to the ability of agroecosystems to ensure human access to food by affecting both the quantity and quality of crop production. Currently, there is growing knowledge about the fact that agrivoltaic systems may represent a direct strategy to cope with climate change driven by carbon dioxide emissions for energy production, preserving the capacity of agroecosystems to maintain food security. The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of environmental conditions generated by photovoltaic (PV) panels for sustaining open-field tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) fruit production under varying water supply regimes. Tomato plants were grown beneath PV panels or in full sunlight. In each scenario, two plots with an equal number of plants were subjected to different irrigation levels: high watering (HW) and low watering (LW). The results showed a lower number of tomato fruit produced grown under the PV panels, with an increased fruit size and water content under a normal water supply. The Brix degrees of the tomato fruits grown under the panel were more comparable to the fruits commercially available on the market than the Brix degree of the fruits grown in open-field sunlight. Thus, our data supported the conclusion that the agrivoltaic system, in the context of climate change with the enduring drought and long-term water scarcity, can be a good adaptation strategy to maintain favorable tomato production compared to the full sunlight conditions. Furthermore, these results can be important for planning breeding programs, since in many cases, the tomato fruits grown in full sunlight were seedless.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/7/3095agrivoltaicagroecosystemclimate changecrop adaptationfood securityphotovoltaic panels |
| spellingShingle | Aurelia Scarano Teodoro Semeraro Antonio Calisi Roberta Aretano Caterina Rotolo Marcello S. Lenucci Angelo Santino Gabriella Piro Monica De Caroli Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) Applied Sciences agrivoltaic agroecosystem climate change crop adaptation food security photovoltaic panels |
| title | Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) |
| title_full | Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) |
| title_fullStr | Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) |
| title_short | Effects of the Agrivoltaic System on Crop Production: The Case of Tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.) |
| title_sort | effects of the agrivoltaic system on crop production the case of tomato i solanum lycopersicum i l |
| topic | agrivoltaic agroecosystem climate change crop adaptation food security photovoltaic panels |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/7/3095 |
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