Improving secondary metabolite accumulation, mineral content, and growth of coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) by regulating light quality in a plant factory

Abstract

ABSTRACTA plant factory with artificial lighting is an advanced indoor cultivation system that has been being developed rapidly for producing high-quality vegetables in many countries. Coriander is an important herbal vegetable and contains abundant secondary metabolites, vitamins, and minerals, which are essential for human health. Five different light qualities, red (R), blue (B), green (G), red:blue (RB, ratio of 87:13), and red:blue:far-red (RBFr, ratio of 81.5:12.5:6) were applied to identify the optimal light quality for enhancing the growth and accumulation of minerals and bioactive metabolites in coriander. Results showed that biomass, chlorophyll index, and ascorbic acid content of coriander plants were significantly higher in RB or RBFr light treatments than in other light treatments. The antioxidant capacity and total phenolic content were the highest under B light. The total phenolic content per plant was the highest under RBFr light due to the high growth rate and biomass production of the plants. Besides, tipburn occurrence in coriander was not affected by total Ca content in the shoot. RBFr was found to be the optimal light spectrum for producing coriander with high yield and contents of ascorbic acid, total phenolics, Ca, and P in a plant factory.