Abstract
The aim of this work was to analyze the influence of the salinity of the nutrient solution on the transpiration and growth of Cordyline fruticosa var. “Red Edge” plants. A specific irrigation management model was calibrated with the experimental data. An experiment was performed with four treatments. These treatments consisted of the application of four nutrient solutions with different electrical conductivity (ECw) levels ranging from 1.5 dS m−1 (control treatment) to 4.5 dS m−1. The results showed that day-time transpiration decreases when salt concentration in the nutrient solution increases. The transpiration of the plant in the control treatment was modelled by applying a combination method while the effect of the salinity of the nutrient solution was modelled by deriving a saline stress coefficient from the experimental data. The results showed that significant reductions in plant transpiration were observed for increasing values of ECw. The crop development and yield were also affected by the increasing salinity of the nutrient solution. A relationship between the ECw and the relative crop yield was derived.
Highlights
The growing of flowers and ornamental plants is an important production sector in many parts of the world
The improvement of irrigation water efficiency is of paramount importance, especially in semiarid regions, like some areas located in the Mediterranean Basin in Spain, especially in the greenhouse production district, and its importance will increase in the future due to climate change
The transpiration of C. fruticosa grown in a container under no salinity stress was modelled by using the Penman–Monteith equation modified by Baille et al (1994)
Summary
The growing of flowers and ornamental plants is an important production sector in many parts of the world. The total area devoted to grow ornamental plants in Spain is approximately 5636 ha and its economic importance is very high [1]. An increasing salinization process [3,4] and non-point source pollution of the groundwater due to nitrate is taking place because of the irrigation return flows [5]. This situation is common in many regions since, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) [6], over 6% of the world’s land, which accounts for more than 800 million ha, is affected by either salinity or sodicity
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