Effects of nitrogen and irrigation on hollow stem of cauliflower(Brassica oleraceavarbotrytis)

Abstract

In a field experiment carried out in two seasons (1986 and 1987), cauliflower suffered a high incidence (mean 49%) of hollow stem. The size of the hollows increased dramatically with increasing applications of nitrogen, but only insofar as this increased plant size: at high levels of N, the hollows score levelled off. Irrigation (19 mm at 25 mm soil moisture deficit) increased the severity of the disorder greatly in 1987, when it also affected plant size. Boron concentrations in the curd, and in young and mature leaves, showed no significant relationship with the incidence of hollows, and an examination of the literature suggests that, despite popular belief, there is virtually no evidence to link hollow stem with boron deficiency.