The importance of outdoor temperature sensors and their effect on agriculture is the topic that we are going to develop in this article. The vulnerability of crops to extreme temperatures is the main objective to combat, as well as the way to avoid damage with new technologies.
Outside temperature
Temperature is the measure we use to measure the amount of heat radiated by an object or the environment.
The influence of temperature on plants is fundamental, both in their development and especially when they are extreme or have sudden changes.
Temperature can affect:
- Perspiration, governed in equal parts by lighting and temperature , is greater as temperatures increase, being zero in the dark. It is controlled by the stomata.
- Photosynthesis , is the process produced with lighting and in which the plant transforms light energy into chemical energy, it is carried out weakly at low temperatures and rises to a maximum temperature threshold for each species.
- Respiration , is the process produced with low lighting and in which the plant through the oxidation of sugars, fats, organic acids, etc. obtains energy and releases CO2 and water vapor. Respiratory activity is weak at low temperatures and rises to a maximum temperature threshold for each species.
- In the enzymatic activities they are paralyzed when the optimum temperature of each plant is exceeded.
- The permeability of the cell membrane altering its fluidity.
- The absorption of water and nutrients is altered by extreme temperatures.
- Germination . Each plant species has a temperature below which its seeds cannot germinate.
We must develop strategies to deal with extreme temperatures, above 35º and below 0º.
Low temperatures do not affect all plants equally, it depends on the threshold that each one has. With the highs they also influence differently in each variety.
To assess the influence of outside temperature on plants we have to understand a very important concept: the thermal integral . It sounds very mathematical, but it really is a pretty straightforward concept.
What is the thermal integral?
It is the amount of degrees Celsius that a crop must accumulate from when it is sown or planted until we obtain its production in the current vegetative cycle.
For example, a lettuce has approximately a thermal integral of 700ºC from when it is planted until it is ready for consumption.
Measuring this thermal integral helps the farmer a lot. the measurement is made from the lower threshold to the upper threshold .
Thermal thresholds
Temperatures influence plant growth in such a way that below a certain temperature, the plant is in "dormancy", that is, its growth stops almost completely.
The lower threshold is the minimum temperature that causes its growth to begin. From that temperature, the hours of heat are counted to calculate the thermal integral. For example, in pistachios it is 7.2ºC.
The upper threshold is the maximum temperature that stops the development of the plant almost completely. Above them they are not counted for the thermal integral either.
Each plant has a thermal integral and that will be the reason for other articles. Today we focus on explaining in a general way the influence of outdoor temperature on agriculture.
Outdoor temperature sensors
Plantae offers outdoor temperature sensors with thermal integral calculation.
At each moment the farmer can have information on the moment in which he exceeds the lower threshold and therefore begins a new stage in the development of the plant.
We installed a meteorological station in the plantation that sends information through its sensors of the ambient temperature to one meter from the ground.
The importance of measurement with outdoor temperature sensors is the prediction of the phenological states of the crop, pests and diseases and the optimal harvest time.
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