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2025 Vol.52, Issue 2 Preview Page

Engineering

Effects of light treatment on growth and yield of barley sprouts
Kyeoung Cheol Kim12
,
Ju-Sung Kim1*
1Major in Plant Resource and Environment College of Agriculture and Life Science, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, Korea
2Bio-Health Materials Core-Facility Center, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, Korea
*Corresponding Author
1 June 2025. pp. 153-162
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Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of different light sources on the growth and quality characteristics of barley sprouts cultivated in a plant factory system. Barley sprouts were grown for 9 days under natural light, mixed LED (red : white : blue = 2 : 1 : 1), and fluorescent LED conditions, and their growth performance and functional quality were assessed. Growth analysis revealed that sprouts cultivated under artificial lighting showed faster shoot development and higher nitrogen balance index (NBI) compared to those grown under natural light. Among the artificial light treatments, fluorescent LEDs promoted more rapid growth than mixed LEDs, resulting in a significant increase in biomass and suggesting the potential for shortened cultivation periods. For quality evaluation, barley sprouts grown under fluorescent LEDs were extracted using different solvents (distilled water, ethanol, and 70% ethanol), and total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), luteolin content, and antioxidant activity were analyzed. The 70% ethanol extract exhibited the highest levels of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity, indicating its suitability as an effective extraction solvent. Collectively, these results suggest that applying fluorescent LEDs in a plant factory system can enhance the growth rate and yield of barley sprouts while maintaining high-quality bioactive compound content. Furthermore, 70% ethanol was identified as the most efficient solvent for extracting functional components from barley sprouts.

Keywords
barley sprouts
LED
luteolin
plant factory system
crop yield
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Information
  • Publisher :Institute of Agricultural Science, Chungnam National University
  • Publisher(Ko) :충남대학교 농업과학연구소
  • Journal Title :Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
  • Journal Title(Ko) :농업과학연구
  • Volume : 52
  • No :2
  • Pages :153-162
  • Received Date : 2024-11-01
  • Revised Date : 2025-05-20
  • Accepted Date : 2025-05-23
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.7744/kjoas.520208
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