451 Transplant Depth can Overcome “Elephant's Foot” Disorder in a Hydroponic Greenhouse Sweet Pepper Crop

Abstract

A physiological disorder, “Elephant's Foot”, can develop in greenhouse hydroponic sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). In a plant with this disorder, the base of the stem becomes swollen below the cotyledon level and wounds develop at the base of the stem's epidermis, what might predispose it to a localized rot and result in a sudden permanent plant wilt. Salt accumulation at the base of the stem could be a possible cause of the epidermis wounds. The effects of soilless media type (perlite, coconut coir, pine bark, and peat–perlite–vermiculate mix), transplant depth, and amount of nutrient solution applied per day were studied to evaluate the development of “Elephant's Foot” on a summer–fall sweet pepper greenhouse crop in Gainesville, Fla. Seedlings grown in polyethylene containers were transplanted 29 June 1999 into 11.4-L pots at three transplant depths: a) at half of the cell height, discarding only the bottom of the container (TOP); b) at the cotyledon level (LEVEL), and c) at the second stem node (DEEP). Plants were irrigated with 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, and 4 L/day per plant of solution. The percentage of plants with epidermis wounds at the base of the stem was highest (82.5%) on TOP plants, compared to LEVEL (5.8%) and DEEP plants (0%). TOP plants had higher values of electrical conductivity on the stem epidermis than LEVEL and DEEP plants. There was a positive linear relationship (r = 0.82) between the percentage of plants with epidermis wounds and the electrical conductivity. Early yield of extra large and large fruits was higher in DEEP (1.05 kg·m–2) than in TOP plants (0.82 kg·m–2). Transplanting sweet pepper with the cotyledonary node under the soilless media could minimize salt accumulation and epidermis damage at the base of the stem level.