THE EFFECT OF SUBSTRATE TYPE ON THE QUALITY OF WATERMELON SEEDLINGS
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Watermelon is one of the leading vegetable crops grown in R. Macedonia. It is regularly produced by seedlings and very seldom by seed. The objective of the research was to determine the influence of growing substrate type on the quality of watermelon seedlings, variety Fantasy F1. Three different substrates were tested as follows: homemade substrate mixture of organic cattle manure and soil in ratio 1:1 (Reference treatment), commercial Brill substrate with Trichoderma (Treatment 1) and mixture of homemade substrate and Brill substrate with Trichoderma in ratio 1:1 (Treatment 2). According to research methodology several biometrical parameters were measured in order to determine quality of the watermelon seedlings as follows: seedling length (cm), mass of the aerial seedling part (g), stem thickness (mm), leaves number, leaves mass (g), root length (cm) and root mass (g). The seedlings were measured 18 days after sprouting. The results showed that seedlings grown in Brill substrate with Trichoderma had the best parameters for mass of the aerial seedling part (5.10cm), stem thickness (3.30mm), leaves number (6.27), leaves mass (9.04g), root length (17.17cm) and root length (13.95g). Only seedlings from treatment 2 were longer (16.23cm) in comparison to the Reference treatment (14.6cm) and Treatment 1 (14.73cm).
Downloads
Article Details
References
2. Bogevska, Z. (2008). Influence of substrate type on the pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) seedlings quality growth and development, Master thesis, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food, University “Ss. Cyril and Methodius” – Skopje.
3. Ceglie, F. G., Bustamante, M. A., Ben Amara, M., & Tittarelli, F. (2015). The Challenge of Peat Substitution in Organic Seedling Production: Optimization of Growing Media Formulation through Mixture Design and Response Surface Analysis. PLoS ONE, 10(6), 0128600.
4. Kokalis-Burelle, N., Vavrina, C. S., Reddy, M. S., Kloepper, J. W. (2003). Amendment of Muskmelon and Watermelon Transplant Media with Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria: Effects on Seedling Quality, Disease, and Nematode Resistance. HortTechnology, 13 (3): 476-481.
5. Silva Júnior, Eugênio Gonçalves da, Silva, Anselmo Ferreira da, Lima, Jucelino de Sousa, Silva, Maria de Fátima Caetano da, & Maia, Josemir Moura. (2017). Vegetative development and content of calcium, potassium, and sodium in watermelon under salinity stress on organic substrates. Pesquisa Agropecuária Brasileira, 52(12), 1149-1157.
6. Silva, José E. S. B. da, Matias, Janete R., Guirra, Keylan S., Aragão, Carlos A., Araujo, Gherman G. L. de, & Dantas, Bárbara F. (2015). Development of seedlings of watermelon cv. Crimson Sweet irrigated with biosaline water. Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agrícola e Ambiental, 19(9), 835-840.
7. State Statistical Office of Republic of Macedonia (2016). Statistical Yearbook. Chapter Agriculture.
8. Yaping, S., Diankui, C. (2005). Influence of Plug Cell Size for Root Vigor and Seedling Quality on Graft Watermelon Seedling. International Conference on Sustainable Greenhouse Systems - Greensys2004. Acta Hort. (ISHS) 691:107-112.
9. Yetisir, H., Sari, N. (2003). Effect of different rootstock on plant growth, yield and quality of watermelon. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture, 43, 1269–1274.