Growth and Yield Of Pakchoi (Brasicca Rapa L.) in Two Hydroponic Systems with Four Types Of Nutrients

Abstract

A research on the growth and yield of pakchoi (Brasicca rapa L.) in two hydroponic systems with four types of nutrients had been conducted. The objectives of this research were (1) to compare pakchoi (Brasicca rapa L.) growth with four types of nutrients and two hydroponic systems; and (2) to compare yield of pakchoi (Brasicca rapa L.) with four types of nutrients and two hydroponic systems. This research used two factor of two hydroponic systems with four types of nutrients. The hydroponic systems to use were Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) and Deep Flow Technique (DFT). The types of nutritions to use were AB mix nutrient, NPK fertilizer (16, 16, 16), complex fertilizer (Growmore®), and liquid organic fertilizer (Strong ®). Each treatment was applied into experiment unit according to completely randomized group design with 4 repetitions. Obtained data were tested with F-test (anova) and then continued with Least Significant Difference test at α 5%. Electrical Conductivity (EC) of nutrient was set uniformly at 2.5 mS/cm. EC value for vegetables was usually 2.5 mS/cm. The research results showed that (1) using NFT hydroponic system with AB mix (S2NI) and NPK (S2N3) nutrients showed best plant height values of 27.51 cm and 24.83 cm; (2) S2NI treatment showed best wet weight and dry weight values of 161.22 g and 10.03 g. Best leaf width (14.66 cm) was shown by treatment of DFT hydroponic system with NPK (S1N3) nutrient; (3) NFT hydroponic system was better than DFT hydroponic system for pakchoi cultivation and the combination of NFT hydroponic system and AB mix nutrient showed the best pakchoi yield. However, the combination between NFT hydroponic system and NPK could be an alternative in pakchoi hydroponic cultivation in overcoming AB mix nutrient scarcity in the market.