• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.225-236
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• 2019

BACKGROUND: Hydroponics is one of the methods for evaluating plant production using the inorganic nutrient solutions, which is applied under the artificial light conditions of plant factory system. However, the application of the conventional inorganic nutrients for hydroponics caused several environmental problems: waste from culture mediums and high nitrate concentration in plants. Organic nutrients are generally irrigated as a supplementary fertilizer for plant growth promotion under field or greenhouse conditions. Hydroponic culture using organic nutrients derived from the agricultural by-products such as dumped stems, leaves or immature fruits is rarely considered in plant factory system. Effect of organic or conventional inorganic nutrient solutions on the growth and nutrient absorption pattern of green and red leaf lettuces was investigated in this experiment under fluorescent lamps (FL) and mixture Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs). METHODS AND RESULTS: Single solution of tomatoes (TJ) and kales (K) deriving from agricultural by-products including leaves or stems and its mixed solution (mixture ration 1:1) with conventional inorganic Yamazaki (Y) were supplied for hydroponics under the plant factory system. The Yamazaki solution was considered as a control. 'Jeockchima' and 'Cheongchima' lettuce seedlings (Lactuca sativa L.) were used as plant materials. The seedlings which developed 2~3 true leaves were grown under the light qualities of FL and mixed LED lights of blue plus red plus white of 1:2:1 mixture in energy ratio for 35 days. Light intensity of the light sources was controlled at 180 μmol/㎡/s on the culture bed. The single and mixture nutrient solutions of organic and/or inorganic components which controlled at 1.5 dS/m EC and 5.8 pH were regularly irrigated by the deep flow technique (DFT) system on the culture gutters. Number of unfolded leaves of the seedlings grown under the single or mixed nutrient solutions were significantly increased compared to the conventional Y treatment. Leaf extension of 'Jeockchima' under the mixture LED radiation condition was not affected by Y and YK or YTJ mixture treatments. SPAD value in 'Jeockchima' leaves exposed by FL under the YK mixture medium was approximately 45 % higher than under conventional Y treatment. Otherwise, the maximum SPAD value in the leaves of 'Cheongchima' seedlings was shown in YK treatment under the mixture LED lights. NO₃-N contents in Y treatment treated with inorganic nutrient at the end of the experiment were up to 75% declined rather than increased over 60 % in the K and TJ organic treatment. CONCLUSION: Growth of the seedlings was affected by the mixture treatments of the organic and inorganic solutions, although similar or lower dry weight was recorded than in the inorganic treatment Y under the plant factory system. Treatment Y containing the highest NO₃-N content among the considered nutrients influenced growth increment of the seedlings comparing to the other nutrients. However effect of the higher NO₃-N content in the seedling growth was different according to the light qualities considered in the experiment as shown in leaf expansion, pigmentation or dry weight promotion under the single or mixed nutrients.