Agronomic evaluation of iceberg lettuce cultivars in hydroponic system

Abstract

Lettuce production in hydroponic cultivation has been gradually increasing, but there is great variation with respect to the available technologies, as well as to information on local performance of lettuce cultivars. The objective of this study was to evaluate 11 cultivars of iceberg lettuce in hydroponic system under cultivation under a low-density polyethylene (LDPE) cover, with 150 μm thickness, and in a screenhouse covered with ChoromatiNet®Leno red-pigmented net with 30% shading in the summer in Jataí-GO, Brazil. Two experiments were conducted in a randomized block design with three replicates, one in an environment covered with a red net and the other in a greenhouse covered with transparent plastic. The seedlings were transplanted to the final growth channel 17 days after sowing, and harvest was carried out at 33 days of final growth bench, when the following characteristics were evaluated: head formation, total chlorophyll content, soluble solids content, total fresh mass, marketable fresh mass, stem fresh mass, root fresh mass, number of leaves, stem length and stem diameter. All cultivars showed commercial standard for the fresh market in Jataí-GO.