EFFICIENCY OF TERMO-REFLECTIVE SCREENS AND SHADING IN PROTECTED ENVIRONMENTAL SUBMITTED TO HIGH TEMPERATURES - DOI: 10.13083/1414-3984.v22n01a04

Abstract

Cultivation in protected environments allows for crop production in seasons that normally would not be suitable for open field production. This study sought to evaluate the variations in luminosity, air and soil temperature and relative humidity of the air in different environmental conditions during the winter and summer, in Cáceres-MT, using screens with mesh of 30, 40 and 50% shading, thermo-reflective screens with 30, 40 and 50% shading and an open field. The experimental design utilized consisted of randomized blocks with 10 replications, represented by 10 days of collection. It was observed that the screened environments reduced the minimum, average and maximum values of the luminosity and air temperature attributes, and resulted in an increase in relative humidity compared to the open field environment. The black screens with 40% and 50% shading and the 50% thermo-reflective screen presented greatest efficiency to reduce luminosity and air temperature. The screen with 50% shading was that which resulted in the greatest indices of relative humidity of the air among the treatments.