Specification of snowpack as a spectral conversion material and its application for agriculture

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K15630
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 41040:Agricultural environmental engineering and agricultural information engineering-related
• Research Institution: National Agriculture and Food Research Organization
• Principal Investigator: Murakami Keach 国立研究開発法人農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構, 北海道農業研究センター, 研究員 (50813903)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 越冬性 / 低温耐性 / phytochrome / コムギ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Snowpack has the potential to affect physiological reactions in plants that overwinter on the soil surface by altering the spectrum of penetrating sunlight. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of snow as a light quality control material and to assess its impact and potential for agricultural utilization. The transmittance of snow is high in the visible waveband and low in the far-red waveband, exhibiting characteristics opposite to those of leaves. Under up to approximately 15 cm of snow, the increased red/far-red ratio could sufficiently induce physiological responses via photoreceptors. Lighting treatment above the snow surface on wheat plants showed that the effects of light quality under snow on survival rate and post-melting growth were smaller than the varietal differences. Therefore, snow possesses characteristics as a light quality control material, but its impact on crop productivity is presumed to be minimal.

Free Research Field

生物環境工学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

植物の資源獲得競争という観点から重要な融雪期の積雪下の地表面における光環境の特性を整理し、電照実験によりその光環境が越冬性植物に及ぼす影響を評価した。これらの結果は、気候変動の影響を顕著に受ける積雪地帯での植物の振る舞いに関する基礎的な知見である。また、おもに極域で得られた既存の積雪透過特性が地理状況によっては再現しない可能性を示唆し、生産圏における積雪の光学的特性評価の重要性を示した。