Artificial Lighting

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Supplemental lighting has become indispensable at farms during the winter, when there is relatively little sunshine compared with other times of year. Here's how farmers grow their crops using artificial light.

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About 30 percent of rose farms use artificial lighting, because sufficient lighting is essential to prevent the formation of black spots on roses and make their color bright enough.

[Soundbite] Ko Kwang-min(Flower Farmer) : "I installed the supplemental lights because people want to buy roses of unique colors and such flowers cost more on the market."

Farmers cultivating tomatoes and other vegetables also use supplemental lighting. A study conducted by the Rural Development Administration shows that the use of supplemental lighting during the three winter months boosted strawberry production by 30 percent and nearly doubled cucumber production compared to the crops that were raised using natural light only. Artificial lighting has become an essential part of farming in winter, because the amount of sunshine drops to only 70 percent of the spring levels and there are many cloudy and dusty days.

[Soundbite] Kwon Jun-kook(Rural Development Administration) : "It's especially effective on cloudy or smog days. Supplemental lighting helps prevent biological disorders and pests in crops."

The Rural Development Administration expects more farms to install supplemental lighting despite the installation costs surpassing 8,000 dollars for a hundred lights and monthly electricity costs.