The Comparative Performance of Soil-Based Systems with Hydroponics  

作　　者：Paige Ann Carroll George Paul Buss Mya Alexandria Catherine Griffith Xiusheng Yang John L. Griffis Jr. Galen Papkov Sarah Bauer Kathryn Jackson Ankit Kumar Singh Paige Ann Carroll;George Paul Buss;Mya Alexandria Catherine Griffith;Xiusheng Yang;John L. Griffis Jr.;Galen Papkov;Sarah Bauer;Kathryn Jackson;Ankit Kumar Singh(Department of Ecology and Environmental Studies, The Water School, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA;Department of Marine and Earth Sciences, The Water School, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA;Department of Natural Resources, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA;Department of Mathematics, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA;Department of Environmental and Civil Engineering, Mercer University, Macon, GA, USA;Independent Researcher, Alexandria, VA, USA)

机构地区：[1]Department of Ecology and Environmental Studies, The Water School, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA [2]Department of Marine and Earth Sciences, The Water School, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA [3]Department of Natural Resources, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA [4]Department of Mathematics, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA [5]Department of Environmental and Civil Engineering, Mercer University, Macon, GA, USA [6]Independent Researcher, Alexandria, VA, USA

出　　处：《Agricultural Sciences》2023年第8期1087-1097,共11页农业科学（英文）

摘　　要：Conventional soil-based agriculture is resource-intensive, utilizing large amounts of land and water, thereby placing a strain on Earth’s natural resources. Soil-based agricultural techniques create environmental issues such as soil degradation, deforestation, and groundwater pollution from the mass implementation of fertilizers and pesticides. Agricultural crop production using hydroponics has shown promise to be less resource intensive and provide a faster turnaround in crop production. Soilless cultivation using hydroponics promises to relieve some pressure on Earth’s ecosystems and resources by utilizing lesser land and water footprint. The APS Laboratory for Sustainable Food at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) compared the growth of Lettuce Lactuca sativa “Rex Butterhead” crop grown using soil and soilless methods to analyze the growth performance in each setting. Crops grown in the soil-based medium were raised in the FGCU Food Forest, used a mix of soil and potting mix, watered regularly, and followed standard Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices. Crops grown hydroponically were grown in a thermally insulated grow tent with an artificial lighting source, ventilation, environmental controls, and the Deep-Water Culture (DWC) method. Lettuce plugs were grown for 15 days in controlled environments until two leaves after the cotyledons had developed and were ready for transplant. Plugs were transplanted into a 4 × 6 matrix at the FGCU Food Forest and the DWC growth system. Crops were grown to full bloom and ready for harvest in the soil (60 days) and soilless (30 days) based setups. We collected crop growth data, including wet weight (g), dry weight (g), leaf area (cm²), and chlorophyll concentration (μmol/m²). From the collected data, we derived the Specific Leaf Area (SLA, cm²/g) and biomass productivity (kg/m²). Descriptive statistics were used to describe the collected and derived data. We investigated the slopes of regression lines for each grConventional soil-based agriculture is resource-intensive, utilizing large amounts of land and water, thereby placing a strain on Earth’s natural resources. Soil-based agricultural techniques create environmental issues such as soil degradation, deforestation, and groundwater pollution from the mass implementation of fertilizers and pesticides. Agricultural crop production using hydroponics has shown promise to be less resource intensive and provide a faster turnaround in crop production. Soilless cultivation using hydroponics promises to relieve some pressure on Earth’s ecosystems and resources by utilizing lesser land and water footprint. The APS Laboratory for Sustainable Food at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) compared the growth of Lettuce Lactuca sativa “Rex Butterhead” crop grown using soil and soilless methods to analyze the growth performance in each setting. Crops grown in the soil-based medium were raised in the FGCU Food Forest, used a mix of soil and potting mix, watered regularly, and followed standard Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices. Crops grown hydroponically were grown in a thermally insulated grow tent with an artificial lighting source, ventilation, environmental controls, and the Deep-Water Culture (DWC) method. Lettuce plugs were grown for 15 days in controlled environments until two leaves after the cotyledons had developed and were ready for transplant. Plugs were transplanted into a 4 × 6 matrix at the FGCU Food Forest and the DWC growth system. Crops were grown to full bloom and ready for harvest in the soil (60 days) and soilless (30 days) based setups. We collected crop growth data, including wet weight (g), dry weight (g), leaf area (cm²), and chlorophyll concentration (μmol/m²). From the collected data, we derived the Specific Leaf Area (SLA, cm²/g) and biomass productivity (kg/m²). Descriptive statistics were used to describe the collected and derived data. We investigated the slopes of regression lines for each gr

关 键 词：Controlled Environment Agriculture HYDROPONICS LETTUCE Soilless Agriculture Urban Agriculture 

分 类 号：S15[农业科学—土壤学]