EFFECTS OF NACL SALINITY ON YIELD, QUALITY AND MINERAL COMPOSITION OF BROCCOLI AND CAULIFLOWER

F. Giuffrida, D. Gangi, R. Giurato , C. Leonardi
A greenhouse experiment was conducted to study the effects of NaCl salinity on yield, quality and mineral composition of broccoli and cauliflower. Broccoli and cauliflower plants were grown in a substrate culture (sand) using three nutrient solutions containing 0 (control), 20 or 40 mM L-1 NaCl. The electrical conductivity of control nutrient solution was 1.9 dS m-1. Broccoli and cauliflower showed a different sensitivity to salt stress. The production of both crops decreased by about 20% at 20 mM L-1 of NaCl. At 40 mM L-1 the yield reduction reached 37 and 29% in broccoli and cauliflower, respectively. The dry matter percentage of heads increased as consequence of salt stress more in cauliflower than broccoli, whereas the rises of soluble solids (+25%) and titratable acidity (+40%) were similar in both species. The highest level of NaCl in the nutrient solution significantly improve the concentration of mineral on fresh basis related to organoleptic quality (K+, Ca2+, Mg2+) and flavor in broccoli (S), whereas the content of K+ and Ca2+ in cauliflower head was higher in the control compared to NaCl treatments and Mg2+ did not differ significantly. As broccoli, the S content increased in cauliflower under the highest salinity condition. Salinity slightly influenced the quality characteristics of broccoli and cauliflower after 10 days of storage at 4°C. Total soluble solids increased as consequence of storage less in the highest salinized treatment compared to the other treatments.
Giuffrida, F., Gangi, D., Giurato , R. and Leonardi, C. (2013). EFFECTS OF NACL SALINITY ON YIELD, QUALITY AND MINERAL COMPOSITION OF BROCCOLI AND CAULIFLOWER. Acta Hortic. 1005, 531-538
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2013.1005.65
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2013.1005.65
salt stress, production, ion compositions, soluble solids, titratable acidity, storage
English

Acta Horticulturae