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Horticulturae
Special Issues
Amendments in Soilless Culture for Improved Productivity of Horticultural Plants
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Amendments in Soilless Culture for Improved Productivity of Horticultural Plants

A special issue of Horticulturae (ISSN 2311-7524). This special issue belongs to the section "Protected Culture".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2025) | Viewed by 4077

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Mengmeng Gu

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Guest Editor
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Interests: horticulture; irrigation and water management; plant fertilization; animal and human nutrition
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Zheng Wang

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Guest Editor
Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu 610213, China
Interests: soil fertility; plant nutrition; fertilizers; agriculture; sustainable agriculture; crop production; organic farming; organic agriculture; crop management; crop science
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Rui Yang

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Guest Editor
Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China
Interests: soilless cultivation; plant nutrition
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ping Yu

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Guest Editor
Department of Horticulture, University of Georgia, Griffin, GA 30223, USA
Interests: substrate; ornamental crops; irrigation; nutrient management; sustainability

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The strong demand for high-value foods, ornamentals, and particularly, for off-season produce has led to a rapid increase in soilless production. The major trends in soilless culture are sustainable and eco-friendly growing substrates, particularly those available at a local level, and sustainable products (e.g., organic active compounds) as a source of plant nutrition and for plant growth regulation. New organic growing media components, especially those from industrial and agricultural wastes, need to be studied and the environmental and social impact need to be evaluated for their large-scale use in horticultural media mixes. In addition, organic supplements (e.g., biostimulants) have been evaluated as fertigation and foliar spray under field conditions, whereas the use of organic supplements in soilless culture, particularly in hydroponic production, is still limited, especially with regard to the biostability and impact on plant growth.

The present Special Issue aims to collect the available information on the role of organic substrates in intensive soilless crop production. Studies regarding substrates made from agricultural and industrial wastes (e.g., biochar and compost) and their characteristics and related effects on nutrition, irrigation, and the response to abiotic and biotic stresses in soilless vegetable and ornamental crop production are particularly welcomed. In addition, studies aiming to understand how organic additives in hydroponic nutrient solutions affect plant growth as well as the underlying mechanisms are also within the scope of the Special Issue.

Dr. Mengmeng Gu
Dr. Zheng Wang
Dr. Rui Yang
Dr. Ping Yu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Horticulturae is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • protected Horticulture
  • growing substrate
  • productivity and quality
  • hydroponics
  • organic amendment
  • biochar
  • biostimulant
  • abiotic and biotic stress

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 9691 KiB  
Article
Investigating the Effect of Hydrafiber and Biochar as a Substitute for Peat-Based Substrate for Zinnia (Zinnia elegans) and Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) Production
by Lilin Chen, Julia Rycyna and Ping Yu
Horticulturae 2024, 10(6), 589; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae10060589 - 4 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1328
Abstract
Increasing environmental and economic concerns necessitate the research for peat moss alternatives, aiming to balance ecological sustainability with cost-effectiveness. This study assessed whether biochar (BC) and hydrafiber (HF) could be a partial replacement for peat moss as substrate components. Twelve substrates were formulated [...] Read more.
Increasing environmental and economic concerns necessitate the research for peat moss alternatives, aiming to balance ecological sustainability with cost-effectiveness. This study assessed whether biochar (BC) and hydrafiber (HF) could be a partial replacement for peat moss as substrate components. Twelve substrates were formulated by either mixing BC (20%, 40%, and 60%, by vol.) with HF (20%, 40%, and 60%, by vol.), with the remaining being peat moss or mixing BC (0%, 20%, 40%, and 60%, by vol.) with the commercial substrates (CS) to grow zinnia (Zinnia elegans) and snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) plants in containers. The physical properties of the substrates, including container capacity, total porosity, air space, bulk density, and chemical properties including leachate pH and electrical conductivity (EC) were measured. Plant growth parameters including growth index (GI) and leaf greenness (indicated with SPAD), biomass, and number of flowers were measured biweekly. The results showed all the substrate mixes had similar air space, bulk density, and SPAD. Treatment with 20% BC and 80% CS yielded the highest GI, biomass, and numbers of flowers in both zinnia and snapdragon. In conclusion, BC could be used to partially (20%) replace commercial substrate mix for container-grown zinnia and snapdragon. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Amendments in Soilless Culture for Improved Productivity of Horticultural Plants)
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12 pages, 1338 KiB  
Article
Physical Properties and Crop Performance of Four Substrate Fibers in Greenhouse Petunia Production
by Maureen E. Thiessen, Jeb S. Fields and Damon E. Abdi
Horticulturae 2024, 10(3), 279; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae10030279 - 15 Mar 2024
Viewed by 1938
Abstract
As peat (P) demand increases throughout the horticultural industry, alternative fibers must be evaluated. Sugarcane bagasse (B), wood fiber (W), and coconut coir (C) have received interest as domestically available alternatives to P, with demonstrated success in producing greenhouse crops. However, there is [...] Read more.
As peat (P) demand increases throughout the horticultural industry, alternative fibers must be evaluated. Sugarcane bagasse (B), wood fiber (W), and coconut coir (C) have received interest as domestically available alternatives to P, with demonstrated success in producing greenhouse crops. However, there is limited research comparing these materials to peat. This research evaluated the substrate properties and productivity of Petunia Supertunia Mini Vista ‘Indigo’ in pine bark substrates amended with C, W, B, or P and fertigated weekly at 100, 200, or 300 parts per million (ppm) nitrogen (N) to account for possible N immobilization. The container capacity was lowest and air-filled porosity was highest in W and B substrates. Substrate pH increased in W and B substrates, and C substrates were fertigated at 100 ppm N. Increasing the N rate increased the growth index in all substrates, especially B and W substrates later in the production period. Higher fertilization increased shoot mass, chlorophyll content, and blooms across all substrates, demonstrating that fertilizer supplementation may offset possible N immobilization. While plant growth and quality parameters were greatest in the P blend, increasing N applications produced similar-quality plants using alternative substrates, demonstrating that modifying fertilizer management practices can make alternative fibers a viable horticultural substrate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Amendments in Soilless Culture for Improved Productivity of Horticultural Plants)
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