The environment in Ghanaian greenhouses

The project “Safe and accessible greenhouse production of (fruit) vegetables in Ghana” (“Fresh Green Ghana”), among others, intends to achieve improvement and enlargement of protected horticulture through data sharing and technology improvement, including the post-harvest chain, in collaboration with growers. This can contribute to greater availability of fresh (fruit) vegetables for the urban poor in Ghana. Data on environmental conditions outside and inside four greenhouses in southern Ghana were obtained from January 2018 – August 2019. The most important environmental character is temperature. Outdoor temperatures vary between 21 and 35oC, and indoor temperatures can be up to 10oC higher. Such high temperatures are have negative effects on crop growth and production. Influencing factors are altitude, size and orientation of the greenhouse, use of screens, and wind speed and direction. A number of management options to reduce the temperature increase are discussed. With this quantitative information, greenhouse designers and constructors and growers are better informed to make the right decisions.