Method for cultivating plant

• US 9,363,951 B2
• Filed: 02/03/2014
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Showa Denko KK (Resonac Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Showa Denko KK (Resonac Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Takeuchi, Ryouichi, Ara, Hironori
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayes, Kristen C
• Application Number:
  US14/171,034
• Publication Number:
  US 20140215912A1
• Time in Patent Office: 862 Days
• Field of Search: 47/481.LS
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 7/045 with electric lighting
• CPC Class Codes: A01H 3/02 by controlling duration, wavelength, intensity, or periodicity of illumination
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 60/14 Measures for saving energy, e.g. in green houses

Abstract

A plant-cultivating method is provided which comprises a red light irradiation step (A) and a blue light irradiation step (B), wherein the step (A) and the step (B) are independently carried out for a predetermined period of time under cultivation conditions such that a fertilizer is used at each of the step (A) and the step (B), of which at least the fertilizer used at the step (B) is applied in the form of a nutritious liquid containing fertilizer ingredients and further an increased amount of dissolved oxygen, which nutritious liquid is prepared by adding oxygen therein. Preferably, a nutritious liquid is applied at each of the step (A) and the step (B), and the nutritious liquid applied at the step (B) contains dissolved oxygen at a content higher than that in the nutritious liquid applied at the step (A).

Claims

1. A method of cultivating a plant comprising a step (A) of irradiating a plant with a red light and a step (B) of irradiating a plant with a blue light, wherein the red light irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B) are independently carried out for a predetermined period of time under cultivation conditions such that a fertilizer is used at each of the red light irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B), of which at least the fertilizer used at the blue light irradiation step (B) is applied in the form of a nutritious liquid containing fertilizer ingredients and further an amount of dissolved oxygen, which nutritious liquid is prepared by adding oxygen therein.

2. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 1, wherein a nutritious liquid containing fertilizer ingredients is applied at each of the red light irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B), and the nutritious liquid applied at the blue light irradiation step (B) contains dissolved oxygen at a content higher than the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied at the red light irradiation step (A).

3. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 2, wherein the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied at the blue light irradiation step (B) is larger than 15 ppm but not larger than 50 ppm, and the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied at the red irradiation step (A) is in the range of 5 ppm to 20 ppm.

4. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 2, wherein the difference between the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied used at the blue light irradiation step (B) and the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied at the red light irradiation step (A) is at least 10 ppm.

5. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 2, wherein the difference between the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied at the blue light irradiation step (B) and the content of dissolved oxygen in the nutritious liquid applied at the red light irradiation step (A) is in the range of 15 ppm to 40 ppm.

6. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 2, wherein, among the nutritious liquids applied at the blue light irradiation step (B) and the red light irradiation step (A), at least the nutritious liquid applied at the blue light irradiation step (B) contains dissolved oxygen added therein by bubbling air or oxygen, or by incorporating dissolved oxygen-containing water prepared by bubbling air or oxygen.

7. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 2, wherein, among the nutritious liquids applied at the red light irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B), at least the nutritious liquid applied at the blue light irradiation step (B) contains nanobubbles of oxygen which are prepared by bubbling air or oxygen therein.

8. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 2, wherein the nutritious liquid applied at the red light irradiation step (A) contains nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium as fertilizer ingredients in contents larger than contents of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the nutritious liquid applied at the blue light irradiation step (B).

9. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 1, wherein the plant is selected from algae, phytoplankton and euglena.

10. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 1, wherein the red light-irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B) are alternately and repeatedly carried out over a period of at least one hour for each irradiation time.

11. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 1, wherein the red light irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B) are carried out using an illumination lamp facility having red light emitting elements and blue light emitting elements, both of which are capable of being independently operated, and the red light emitting elements and the blue light emitting elements exhibit a light emission intensity ratio of red light to blue light of at least 1:

1 as expressed by a ratio of photosynthetic photon flux density of red light to blue light.

12. The method of cultivating a plant according to claim 1, wherein the red light irradiation step (A) and the blue light irradiation step (B) are carried out using an illumination lamp facility having red light emitting elements and blue light emitting elements, both of which are capable of being independently operated, and the red light emitting elements and the blue light emitting elements exhibit a light emission intensity ratio of red light to blue light in the range of 2:

1 to 9;

1 as expressed by a ratio of photosynthetic photon flux density of red light to blue light.