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Protected Cultivation of Horticultural Crops: Advances and Sustainability—2nd Edition
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Protected Cultivation of Horticultural Crops: Advances and Sustainability—2nd Edition

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Physiology and Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 3516

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Weijie Jiang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
Interests: greenhouse cultivation; sludge composting; compost quality; vegetables
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Min Wei

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Horticultural Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, China
Interests: greenhouse vegetable
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Protected cultivation, also known as controlled environment agriculture (CEA) or greenhouse cultivation, is a modern agricultural practice used to grow horticultural crops under controlled environmental conditions. This method provides several advantages, including protection from adverse weather, pests, and diseases, as well as the ability to optimize growing conditions for maximum crop yield and quality. It typically utilizes greenhouse structures that allow growers to control various environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, light intensity, and CO2 levels, maintaining ideal conditions for plant growth. This cultivation method is suitable for various horticultural crops, including vegetables, fruits, flowers, and ornamental plants, enabling year-round production, disease and pest management, extended growing seasons, improved crop quality, and prolonged post-harvest freshness.

At present, protected cultivation of horticultural crops has evolved significantly with a strong emphasis on sustainability. This Special Issue will welcome all research related to protective cultivation, also including, but not limited to, the following topics:

  • Greenhouse technology;
  • Hydroponics and soilless cultivation;
  • Fertigation;
  • Integrated pest management;
  • Vertical farming;
  • Sustainable substrates;
  • Organic and sustainable practices.

Prof. Dr. Weijie Jiang
Prof. Dr. Min Wei
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • controlled environment agriculture (CEA)
  • protected cultivation
  • greenhouse
  • tunnel
  • hydroponics
  • soilless cultivation
  • vertical farming

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 2614 KB  
Article
Shade Nets Improve Gas Exchange and Chlorophyll Fluorescence in Young Avocado Trees Grown Under Mediterranean Conditions
by Maria Tasa, Eduardo Badal, Luis Bonet, María Amparo Martínez-Gimeno and Juan Gabriel Pérez-Pérez
Plants 2025, 14(23), 3550; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233550 - 21 Nov 2025
Viewed by 244
Abstract
Avocado trees (Persea americana Mill.) grown in Mediterranean conditions are exposed to high temperatures and intense solar radiation during summer, factors that can severely compromise plant water status and key physiological processes. To minimize these stressful conditions, the use of shade nets [...] Read more.
Avocado trees (Persea americana Mill.) grown in Mediterranean conditions are exposed to high temperatures and intense solar radiation during summer, factors that can severely compromise plant water status and key physiological processes. To minimize these stressful conditions, the use of shade nets is an agronomical technique that permits the creation of an optimal microclimate for crop development. Thus, the aim was to evaluate the effects of shade netting on the physiological response of young avocado trees commercially grown under Mediterranean climatic conditions. The main results showed similar circadian rhythms of plant water status under both crop systems (open-air and shaded) in both seasons. However, the use of shading nets altered the circadian rhythm of leaf gas exchange. In summer, stomatal conductance (gs) remained significantly more open after midday in shaded trees, allowing higher leaf transpiration (Eleaf) and cooler leaf temperature (Tleaf). A similar daily pattern was observed in chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters, including the effective quantum yield of photosystem II (ΦPSII) and the electron transport rate (ETR), with the lowest values occurring at midday. In shaded plants, ΦPSII and ETR remained higher after midday than in open-air, suggesting a lower photochemical inhibition of photosynthesis caused by heat stress and photoinhibition. Thus, the use of shade nets represents an agronomic alternative technique for cultivating avocados in Mediterranean climate conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protected Cultivation of Horticultural Crops: Advances and Sustainability—2nd Edition)
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17 pages, 2506 KB  
Article
Light Regulation Under Equivalent Cumulative Light Integral: Impacts on Growth, Quality, and Energy Efficiency of Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) in Plant Factories
by Jianwen Chen, Cuifang Zhu, Ruifang Li, Zihan Zhou, Chen Miao, Hong Wang, Rongguang Li, Shaofang Wu, Yongxue Zhang, Jiawei Cui, Xiaotao Ding and Yuping Jiang
Plants 2025, 14(22), 3469; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14223469 - 13 Nov 2025
Viewed by 440
Abstract
Facing the significant challenges posed by global population growth and urbanization, plant factories, as an efficient closed cultivation system capable of precise environmental control, have become a key direction in the development of modern agriculture. However, high energy consumption, particularly lighting (which accounts [...] Read more.
Facing the significant challenges posed by global population growth and urbanization, plant factories, as an efficient closed cultivation system capable of precise environmental control, have become a key direction in the development of modern agriculture. However, high energy consumption, particularly lighting (which accounts for over 50%), remains a major bottleneck limiting their large-scale application. This study systematically explored the effects of dynamic light regulation strategies on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) growth, physiological and biochemical indicators (such as chlorophyll, photosynthetic, and fluorescence parameters), nutritional quality, energy utilization efficiency, and post-harvest shelf life. Four different light treatments were designed: a stepwise increasing photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) from 160 to 340 μmol·m−2·s−1 (T1), a constant light intensity of 250 μmol·m−2·s−1 (T2), a three-stage strategy with high light intensity in the middle phase (T3), and a three-stage strategy with sequentially increasing light (T4). The results showed that the T4 treatment exhibited the best overall performance. Compared with the T2 treatment, the T4 treatment increased biomass by 23.4%, significantly improved the net photosynthetic rate by 50.32% at the final measurement, and increased ascorbic acid (AsA) and protein content by 33.36% and 33.19%, respectively. Additionally, this treatment showed the highest energy use efficiency. On the 30th day of treatment, the light energy use efficiency (LUE) and electrical energy use efficiency (EUE) of the T4 treatment were significantly increased, by 23.41% and 23.9%, respectively, compared with the T2 treatment. In summary, dynamic light regulation can synergistically improve crop yield, chlorophyll content, photosynthetic efficiency, nutritional quality, and energy utilization efficiency, providing a theoretical basis and solution for precise light regulation and energy consumption reduction in plant factories. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protected Cultivation of Horticultural Crops: Advances and Sustainability—2nd Edition)
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18 pages, 1346 KB  
Article
Nutrient Diagnosis and Precise Fertilization Model Construction of ‘87-1’ Grape (Vitis vinifera L.) Cultivated in a Facility
by Haibo Wang, Xiaolong Wang, Chang Liu, Xiangbin Shi, Xiaohao Ji, Shengyuan Wang and Tianzhong Li
Plants 2025, 14(21), 3345; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14213345 - 31 Oct 2025
Viewed by 417
Abstract
Rape is one of the most widely cultivated and highest-yielding fruit crops in the world. However, research on its precise nutrient diagnosis and fertilization theory is severely lacking, significantly restricting the development of the grape industry. In this study, an L16(4 [...] Read more.
Rape is one of the most widely cultivated and highest-yielding fruit crops in the world. However, research on its precise nutrient diagnosis and fertilization theory is severely lacking, significantly restricting the development of the grape industry. In this study, an L16(45) orthogonal experimental design was applied to determine the effects of varying ratios of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), and magnesium (Mg) on the fruit quality of ‘87-1’ grape (Vitis vinifera L.) cultivated in a facility, aiming to optimize nutrient application rates and improve fruit quality. Among the treatments T5 (N2P1K2Ca3Mg4), T14 (N4P2K3Ca1Mg4), and T9 (N3P1K3Ca4Mg2), treatment T9 had the most significant effect on single fruit weight, total soluble solids (TSS) content, fruit firmness (FF), and fruit quality index (FQI) and was conducive to the positive accumulation of the above quality indicators. Based on a comprehensive multi-factor analysis of variance, the optimal fertilization combination for achieving a high FQI was N3P1K2Ca1Mg2, corresponding to application rates of 375.0, 0, 168.8, 0, and 70.5 kg·hm−2 for N, P2O5, K2O, CaO, and MgO, respectively. Furthermore, to establish standards for multivariate compositional nutrient diagnosis (CND) and define the nutrient sufficiency range for ‘87-1’ grape fruit cultivated in a facility, the nutrient concentrations in various plant tissues and the soil and the FQI were measured across 80 treatments over five consecutive years. The nutritional status of the grapes cultivated under these treatments was calculated using the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution and the CND method. Based on the optimal nutrient ranges for high FQI sub-populations, a precise fertilization model was developed to facilitate economic fertilizer savings, quality improvement, and standardized grape cultivation in a facility. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protected Cultivation of Horticultural Crops: Advances and Sustainability—2nd Edition)
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17 pages, 1471 KB  
Article
Microclimate Modification, Evapotranspiration, Growth and Essential Oil Yield of Six Medicinal Plants Cultivated Beneath a Dynamic Agrivoltaic System in Southern Italy
by Grazia Disciglio, Antonio Stasi, Annalisa Tarantino and Laura Frabboni
Plants 2025, 14(15), 2428; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14152428 - 5 Aug 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1844
Abstract
This study, conducted in Southern Italy in 2023, investigated the effects of a dynamic agrivoltaics (AV) system on microclimate, water consumption, plant growth, and essential oil yield in six medicinal species: lavender (Lavandula angustifolia L. ‘Royal purple’), lemmon thyme (Thymus citriodorus [...] Read more.
This study, conducted in Southern Italy in 2023, investigated the effects of a dynamic agrivoltaics (AV) system on microclimate, water consumption, plant growth, and essential oil yield in six medicinal species: lavender (Lavandula angustifolia L. ‘Royal purple’), lemmon thyme (Thymus citriodorus (Pers.) Schreb. ar. ‘Aureus’), common thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.), rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus Spenn. ‘Severn seas’), mint (Mentha spicata L. ‘Moroccan’), and sage (Salvia officinalis L. subsp. Officinalis). Due to the rotating solar panels, two distinct ground zones were identified: a consistently shaded area under the panels (UP), and a partially shaded area between the panels (BP). These were compared to an adjacent full-sun control area (T). Microclimate parameters, including solar radiation, air and leaf infrared temperature, and soil temperature, were recorded throughout the cultivation season. Reference evapotranspiration (ETO) was calculated using Turc’s method, and crop evapotranspiration (ETC) was estimated with species-specific crop coefficients (KC). Results showed significantly lower microclimatic values in the UP plot compared to both BP and especially T, resulting in ETC reductions of 81.1% in UP and 13.1% in BP relative to T, an advantage in water-scarce environments. Growth and yield responses varied among species and treatment plots. Except for mint, all species showed a significant reduction in fresh biomass (40.1% to 48.8%) under the high shading of UP compared to T. However, no biomass reductions were observed in BP. Notably, essential oil yields were higher in both UP and BP plots (0.60–2.63%) compared to the T plot (0.51–1.90%). These findings demonstrate that dynamic AV systems can enhance water use efficiency and essential oil yield, offering promising opportunities for sustainable, high-quality medicinal crop production in arid and semi-arid regions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protected Cultivation of Horticultural Crops: Advances and Sustainability—2nd Edition)
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