View from the C3 field next to the greenhouse to the round building of the institute on a sunny day. On the roof of the rotunda, on the left, you can see the meteorology mast made of stainless steel, with its booms. In the foreground a multitude of sunflowers in yellow and light yellow, also a few red and brown ones.

Greenhouse MPI-BGC

Greenhouse and mesocosm experiments, as well as field experiments

The greenhouse of the institute includes 5 air-conditioned greenhouse chambers, an outdoor area with 2 larger test beds and a preparation room. Two foil greenhouses in Isserstedt can also be used for other experiments.

The greenhouse rules

Greenhouse user regulations
Please contact the “Field Experiments and Instrumentation” service group as early as the planning phase of any experiment that requires greenhouse space. Please discuss each experiment you plan with the “Field Experiments” team in advance, particularly regarding crop management, the necessary equipment, and other matters that affect the experiment’s procedure and feasibility.

The usage form

The greenhouse utilization application serves as a basis for better planning of resources, regarding space requirements and time period of the experiment and as a basis for the technical realization.

Greenhouse chamber 3 equipped with minirhizotron chambers, various boxes with meadow species in which camera tubes are installed to record root growth.

The chambers

There are five greenhouse chambers available
In 4 of the chambers there are 2 tables each for plants, sample material, etc.
Chamber no. 5 is a narrower one, with only one table
Chamber 1 , 2 and 3 are equipped with LED lighting
Light, temperature and relative humidity can be adjusted in each chamber
Automatic irrigation is possible
Each chamber is equipped with CAN bus

Experimental bed behind the greenhouse of the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry. This bed is filled with acidic forest soil and shows the diagonally arranged C3 and C4 areas (different CO2 fixation), shortly after seeding.

The experimental beds

To the institute belong 2 experimental beds, which are located directly in front of the greenhouse.
One of the fields is filled with calcareous soil, the other with acidic forest soil.
The beds are divided into different areas.
Four of the areas are equipped with measuring devices (soil moisture and soil temperature).
The data from the greenhouse beds are transmitted to the weather page every 10 minutes and can be seen there in the lower right area.