Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: annachy on 29/03/2013 15:25:00

Title: Why do plants grow better in a greenhouse?
Post by: annachy on 29/03/2013 15:25:00

why plants grow better in a greenhouse ? :-'(

Title: Re: Why do plants grow better in a greenhouse?
Post by: evan_au on 31/03/2013 13:04:41

There are some tropical plants that die when exposed to frost; also, plants will grow more slowly when grown in lower temperatures than their native habitat. A glasshouse/greenhouse allows in the sunlight (glass is transparent to visible light), but traps the re-radiated infra red heat (glass is reflective to infra-red): this is the "greenhouse effect", which keeps the temperatures warmer. By opening & closing windows, it is possible to keep the temperature & humidity in the optimum range for the plants inside.

For some types of plants, artificial lighting is used to help the plants grow - I imagine this could be useful when producing summer-flowering blossoms in the short days of winter. (The alternative is to fly them in from warmer climates...)