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Research Article

Effects of Daily Light Integral and Flower Thinning on Growth, Fruit Production, and Sugar Composition of ‘Kuemsil’ Strawberries in a Vertical Farm
Goun Im1
,
Geonhyoung Kim1
,
Gwang Yun Kim2
,
Yu Kyeong Shin5
,
Jong Nam Lee6
,
Jun Gu Lee1234*
1Department of AI in Agriculture, Graduate School of AI Convergence, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
2Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
3Institute of Agriculture Science & Technology, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
4Core Research Institute of Intelligent Robots, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
5Vegetable Research Division, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science, Rural Development Administration, Wanju 55365, Korea
6Highland Agriculture Research Institute, National Institute of Crop Science, Rural Development Administration, Pyeongchang 25342, Korea
*Corresponding Author
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Abstract

Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) production in a vertical farm requires coordinated management of the light supply and reproductive growth to improve the yield and fruit quality. This study evaluated the daily light integral (DLI; 15, 17.5, and 20 mol·m-2·d-1) and flower thinning (3, 5, and 7 flowers per inflorescence) in ‘Kuemsil’ strawberries during 83 days of reproductive growth. Increasing the DLI shifted fruit production toward larger fruits and increased the number of marketable fruits, defined as fresh weight > 10 g and soluble solids content ≥ 10 °Brix. The soluble solids content ranged from 10.1 to 11.8 °Brix and was significantly lower at DLI 15 than at DLI 20. A sugar analysis showed greater sucrose content at DLI 20, whereas fructose and glucose decreased. Flower thinning alone did not significantly affect the marketable fruit number across DLI levels, although retaining three to five flowers per inflorescence supported fruit quality under DLI 20. Overall, a DLI of 20 mol·m-2·d-1 with three to five flowers per inflorescence was the most effective treatment combination for improving marketable production and sweetness-related characteristics of ‘Kuemsil’ strawberries under controlled indoor cultivation.

Keywords
assimilate partitioning
indoor cultivation
marketable fruit
soluble solids content
sucrose metabolism
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Information
  • Publisher :KOREAN SOCIETY FOR HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE
  • Publisher(Ko) :한국원예학회
  • Journal Title :Horticultural Science and Technology
  • Journal Title(Ko) :원예과학기술지
  • Received Date : 2026-08-13
  • Revised Date : 2026-09-08
  • Accepted Date : 2026-10-02
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.7235/HORT.20260043
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