Development of subirrigation nursery system for double-truss tomato [Lycopersicon esculentum] cultivation by hydroponics
2004
Ohishi, N. (Shizuoka-ken. Agricultural Experiment Station (Japan))
To increase the efficiency of double-truss tomato cultivation with root-zone restriction, a subirrigation nursery system with row-tray was developed and the growth of tomato seedlings was investigated. The row-tray, a plug-tray for producing seedlings, consists of twenty planting furrows. An irrigation drain sheet (IDS) was placed in five or seven furrows per tray, and both edges of IDS were hanging out of the furrows. After setting the root protection sheet (RPS) and substrate sheet (SS) into the furrows, three seeds were sown at the center of SS and one each 100 mm away from the center on both sides. The row-trays were placed on the subirrigation bed with a water retention sheet (WRS). When irrigation starts, nutrient solution is supplied from an irrigation pipe to WRS and is then sucked up from WRS to SS by IDS. Three tomato seedlings grown connected by SS could be planted to the hydroponics in a lump. Fewer total working hours were required to produce seedlings and planting them into row-tray system than for those using a plug-tray system. In the row-tray system, emergence, plant height and leaf number in IDS attached to the row-tray were greater than those in the non -IDS attached row-tray. There was no significant difference in terms of growth between SS and granular rockwool as a substrate. The final emergence percentage was higher than 95% and there was no positional difference within the row-tray or subirrigation bed with regard to plant height or leaf number of the tomato seedlings.
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