Oregon State Study: Solar PV Arrays Could Boost Plant Productivity

Oregon State University (OSU) scientists have discovered that solar arrays could be used as a resource to increase agricultural production on dry, unirrigated farmland. In a study published earlier this month in the journal PLOS One, a research team in OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences found that grasses favored by sheep and cattle thrive in the shade of a solar array installed in a pasture on the OSU campus. The results of the OSU study indicate that locating solar panels on pasture or agricultural fields could increase crop yields, according to corresponding author Chad Higgins, an associate professor in the Department of Biological and Ecological Engineering.