Climate Under Cover: Digital Dynamic Simulation in Plant Bio-Engineering [Hardcover]

From mulching to greenhouses, the air space between the cover and the soil surface is the key to the classification of climates under cover. The same mechanism governs environments produced by the various covers.
This book describes and analyses all the different environments from mulching to greenhouses. The relationship between plants and environment is another important topic in the book.
Stress is placed on the link between quantitative phenomena and qualitative analyses. Most phenomena involved are nonlinear and non-steady-state. An approach called System Dynamics is used, and simulation models developed in the simulation language CSMP are fully used.
The subjects covered are of relevance to graduate students, to scientists and researchers in agriculture and biological sciences and, of course, to agricultural organizations in both the developing and developed countries.
1. Introduction.- 1.1 Introduction.- 1.2 Europe and North America.- 1.3 Asia.- 1.4 Japan.- Problems.- 2. Definition of Covering and Properties of Covering Materials.- 2.1 Introduction.- 2.2 Mulching.- 2.3 Row covers (Tunnels).- 2.4 Floating mulches (Floating row cover).- 2.5 Rain shelters.- 2.6 Unheated greenhouses.- 2.7 Covering materials.- Problems.- 3. Digital Simulation.- 3.1 Introduction.- 3.2 System dynamics.- 3.3 Simulation languages.- 3.4 Digital simulation by CSMP.- 3.5 Model structure and representation.- 3.6 A model for temperature regimes in the soil (CUC-01.- 3.7 Application to steady-state models.- Problems.- 4. Heat Balance of Bare Ground.- 4.1 Introduction.- 4.2 Convective heat transfer.- 4.3 A model with solar radiation and air temperature boundary condition (CUC-02).- 4.4 Mass transfer.- 4.5 A model with latent heat transfer (CUC-03).- 4.6 Radiation balance.- 4.7 Long-wave radiation.- Problems.- 5. Solar Radiation Environment.- 5.1 Introduction.- 5.2 Units of radiation and light.- 5.3 Solar radiation properties of coverl3U