First Year of Farming at Solar Power Site Shows Promise, ISU Researchers Say

Vegetables can thrive growing on a solar farm, as can new ideas and partnerships, the first year of an Iowa State University study showed.

At the Alliant Energy Solar Farm at Iowa State University, a 10-acre facility south of Ames, an interdisciplinary team of ISU researchers is entering the second year of a four-year project to study agrivoltaics – agricultural use of land that’s also home to solar panels. 

Here’s a look at what researchers learned in their first year of farming amid solar panels.

Showing what works

One of the main questions the researchers are exploring is whether growing food crops is compatible with solar arrays, using the tools and techniques needed to make produce farms viable and reliable – basics such as irrigation, fertilization, machinery, and weed and pest management. The answer is a resounding yes, said horticulture professor and chair Ajay Nair, one of the project’s leaders.     

“One thing we’ve for sure found out is we can grow vegetables on a commercial scale on a solar farm. Period. There’s no doubt about it. We have demonstrated the practical aspects of an operation such as this will clearly work,” he said. 

In the first year, the vegetable crops included broccoli, summer squash and bell peppers. While broccoli between the panels was a little smaller than in control plots, summer squash and peppers within the solar panel area produced better, Nair said. Additional years of growing data will be needed to draw firm conclusions, but the researchers think planting produce between panels could offer some relief from summer’s hottest days.