Plant Productions

Plant Productions

Effect of Silicon Nutrition on Strawberry cv. Camerosa Yield and Growth in Outdoor Hydroponic System

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Kamran Ghasemi 1
Mehdi Ghajar Sepanlou 2
Mehdi hadadinejad 1
1 Assistant Professor, Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Crop Sciences, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Sari, Iran
2 Associated Professor, Department of Soil Sciences, Faculty of Crop Sciences, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Sari, Iran
10.22055/ppd.2019.26611.1634
Abstract
Abstract
 
Background and Objectives
Strawberry is one of the important small fruits worldwide because of its high economical value. Mazandaran is ranked second among Iran’s strawberry prodcing provinces with about 14581 tones of strawberry yearly. This research aimed to evaluate the effect of different silicon sources on the reproductive and vegetative growth of strawberry in an outdoor hydroponic system.
 
Materials and Methods
This experiment carried out in a factorial format with two factors consisting of growth media (double medium: 1 cocopeat + 1 perlite, and triple medium: 1 cocopeat + 1 perlite + 1 rice husk) and silicon spray (control, 50 mg/L Si from sodium silicate, 100 mg/L Si from sodium silicate, 50 mg/L Si from potassium silicate, 100 mg/L Si from potassium silicate). It was performed in Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University at 2016. Different characteristics including silicon concentration in the leaf, aerial fresh and dry weight, leaf number, fresh and dry weight of crown, fresh and dry weight of root, yield, weight of single fruit, number of the produced fruits in each plant were evaluated.
 
Results
Potassium silicate 100 increased silicon concentration of strawberry leaf significantly. Leaf number of the plant and aerial dry weight in triple medium were significantly higher than the double medium. High rate of potassium silicate in the triple medium caused lower crown diameter in comparison with potassium silicate 50 in the same medium. However, in the double medium, the potassium silicate 50 was the best treatment for crown diameter.  Both fresh and dry weight of strawberry roots were the highest in the double medium and potassium silicate 50 treatment. Single fruit weight was maximum in the double medium and potassium silicate 100, which was not significantly different from potassium silicate 100 in triple medium. Fruit dry matter in the double medium and potassium silicate 50 treatments was more than other treatments. Fruit size was affected by medium, so that fruit size in the double medium was more than the triple medium significantly.
 
Discussion
Sodium toxicity in sodium silicate treatment, low rate of silicon in potassium silicate 50 treatment, and lack of rice husk in the double medium could all negatively affect different physiological aspects of strawberry growth; or at least, they hindered achieving positive results. In summary, it can be concluded that the double medium and potassium silicate 100 can be recommended for higher yield and big strawberry fruit, but the triple medium and potassium silicate are useful treatments for vegetative growth specially for more crown diameter and root growth.
Keywords
Crown diameter
Growth medium
Rice husk
Silica
Silicate
Subjects
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 © 2020 by the authors. Licensee SCU, Ahvaz, Iran. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0 license) (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)
Plant Productions
Volume 43, Issue 1
Spring 2020
Pages 93-106