Morphogenesis

lights_02_cropped.jpg

How does FR light influence the fruit set of sweet pepper through sugar metabolism?

Light spectrum has a huge impact on plant growth and development. FR light (700-800nm) was found influences a wide range of morphological and physiological processes in plants, for example, germination, stem ...


arabidopsis_cropped.jpg

The response of nitrate uptake at root and whole plant utilization to photosynthetic activity at shoot in Arabidopsis

Nitrate (NO3-) is one of the main nitrogen sources used in horticulture and is often used in relatively high concentrations. However, a high rhizosphere nitrate ...


strawberry_cropped.jpg

Analysis of physiology and development of strawberry plants in a vertical-farming system

Strawberries are a popular and economically important fruit. The recent development of vertical farming enables the year-round production of high quality fruits. To get the most out of this new production method, it is...


tomato_05_cropped.jpg

Move it to improve it! Dynamic planting density in dwarf tomato

Vertical farming is a highly efficient production system for fresh vegetables. Plants are grown under LED lights, with a full control of all growing conditions. A high land, water and nutrient use efficiency can be obtained and no pesticides ...


cucumber_01_cropped.jpg

Remove it to Improve it: Kopdikte (stem thickness) as a potential feedback parameter for leaf pruning

Feedback parameters are quite useful in the controlled environment agriculture industry as they allow growers to identify potential health problems in situ. Kopdikte, or the stem width near the apex of the plant, is curently being ...


cucumber_02_cropped.jpg

Remove it to Improve it: Location of Leaves Pruned

Leaf removal is a common strategy utilized by greenhouse growers to maintain a specific leaf area index (LAI). Leaves can be removed from along the entire height of the canopy. Young leaves, near the top of the plant canopy consume assimilates whereas mature leaves ...


dwarf_tomato_cropped.jpg

FSPM to determine dwarf tomato architectural ideotype for improved carbon assimilation in vertical farming

The aim of this project is to identify one or more architectural ideotypes of dwarf tomato plants that improve carbon assimilation in vertical farming. An existing Functional Structural Plant Models (FSPM) for juvenile high-wire tomatoes ...


lettuce_02_cropped.jpg

Disentangling the effect of photoperiod lenght and PPFD and DLI within a 24h diel cycle

Vertical Farming is a new model in food production with high water, fertilizer and land use efficiency compared to traditional cultivation. No pesticides are applied and since this novel system allows worldwide cultivation, it reduces food ...


lettuce_03_cropped.jpg

Can lettuce plants grow under continous light, challenging crops to grow in un natural environment

Vertical Farming is a new model in food production with high water, fertilizer and land use efficiency compared to traditional cultivation. No pesticides are applied and since this novel system allows worldwide cultivation, it reduces food ...


Tissue_culture_cropped.jpg

Cultured fruit; growing a tomato without a plant

Great progress has been made in developmental biology in recent decades. In animal biology this has led to the advent of ‘lab-grown meat’. (Also known as ‘cultured meat’). We have proposed ‘cultured fruit’ as a sustainable technology for industrial fruit production. A 4-step process for ...


lettuce_01_cropped.jpg

Dual environmanetal entrainment of circadian clock. Can day/night temperature and light/dark periods together entrain the clock?

Vertical Farming is a new model in food production with high water, fertilizer and land use efficiency compared to traditional cultivation. No pesticides are applied and since this novel ...


lettuce_04_cropped.jpg

Optimizing the environment to minimize tipburn

Tipburn is a major problem for vertical farm production because lettuce plants that develop this disorder are unsaleable. The primary theory is that tipburn is caused by a calcium deficiency in the tips of young developing leaves. Yet, supplying more calcium to the rootzone ...


lettuce_05_cropped.jpg

Is tipburn really caused by a calcium deficiency?

Tipburn is a major problem for vertical farm production because lettuce plants that develop this disorder are unsaleable. Despite the importace of minimizing this problem in vertical farms, the actual cause of the disorder is still debated. The most common hypothesis is that ...


roots_02_cropped.jpg

Quantifying the relationship between root restriction and shoot elongation

Optimizing rootzones for crop cultivation must investigate both chemical and physical aspects of the rootzone media. This project investigates the physical properties of rootzone media, specifically root penetration resistance or rootzone compactness/density, ...


lettuce_03_cropped.jpg

Far-red effect on bolting and flowering of Lettuce

Lettuce goes through a process called bolting to transfer from vegetative growth to generative growth. A rapid elongation of the stem marks this process. After bolting, the lettuce leaves become bitter and lose their commercial value. For this reason, modern varieties of lettuce are...


tomato_Ep_cropped.png

Phenotyping the Effects of Far-Red on Dwarf Tomato Plants in Vertical Farming using 3D Scanning Technologies

Vertical farming has gained much attention in recent years due to its potential for high yield crop production in limited spaces. However, the effects of light quality on plant growth and development in vertical farming systems are...


dwarf_tomato_2_cropped.jpg

Move it to improve it! FR lighting in dynamic planting density in dwarf tomato

Vertical farming is a highly efficient production system for fresh vegetables. Plants are grown under LED lights, with a full control of all growing conditions. A high land, water and nutrient use efficiency can be obtained and no pesticides are needed. It can locally produce healthy and safe...


strawberry_cropped.jpg

Analysis of gene expression and development of strawberry plants in a vertical-farming system

Strawberries are a popular and economically important fruit. The recent development of vertical farming enables the year-round production of high quality fruits. To get the most out of this new production method, it is...


Questions or other ideas for thesis topics? Please contact the HPP student coordinator Katharina Hanika.