Hort. Sci. (Prague), 2023, 50(1):25-31 | DOI: 10.17221/5/2022-HORTSCI

Vermiliquer as a biostimulant and antioxidant in hydroponic lettuce (Lactuca sativa) productionOriginal Paper

Adrian Esteban Ortega-Torres, Tomás Sabino Herrera-Matallana, Enrique Rico-García
Department of Biosystems, Faculty of Engineering, Autonomous University of Querétaro, Querétaro, México

The use of vermiliquers obtained from earthworm in hydroponic crops is well received as alternative for fertilization of leafy vegetables. The vermiliquer boosts growth, defense compounds and increases the uptake of nutrients and minerals by plants. The growth and enzymatic activities related to stress and phenolic compounds were explored in hydroponic lettuce crops treated with different concentrations of vermiliquer. The treatments consisted in three different vermiliquer, a Mesh Vermiwash, a Direct Vermiwash, and the Vermileachate, and its combinations as a complement for complete fertilization. The addition of vermiliquer to hydroponic lettuce affected the leaf and root fresh weight, and reactive oxygen species like superoxide dismutase (SOD) or phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL). Vermileachate (Vl) plus Direct Vermiwash treatment was higher in the first week in leaf and root lettuce, indicating an effect biostimulant. Vl gave the highest enzymatic activity in SOD and PAL, indicating an effect elicitor. In summary, vermiwash proved to improve hydroponic lettuce crop and enzymatic activities related to stress.

Keywords: earthworm; organic wastes; greenhouse; agriculture; vermicompost

Published: March 27, 2023  Show citation

ACS AIP APA ASA Harvard Chicago Chicago Notes IEEE ISO690 MLA NLM Turabian Vancouver
Esteban Ortega-Torres A, Sabino Herrera-Matallana T, Rico-García E. Vermiliquer as a biostimulant and antioxidant in hydroponic lettuce (Lactuca sativa) production. Hort. Sci. (Prague). 2023;50(1):25-31. doi: 10.17221/5/2022-HORTSCI.
Share...
Download citation
  • BibTeX (.bib)
  • Bookends (.ris)
  • EasyBib (.ris)
  • EndNote (.enw)
  • EndNote 8 (.xml)
  • ISI WoS (.isi)
  • Medlars (.medlars)
  • Mendeley (.ris)
  • MODS (.xml)
  • Papers (.ris)
  • RefWorks (.txt)
  • RefManager (.ris)
  • RIS (.ris)
  • MS Word (.xml)
  • Zotero (.ris)
    • Open full article

    References

    1. Ahmed Z.F., Alnuaimi A.K., Askri A., Tzortzakis N. (2021): Evaluation of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L .) production under hydroponic dystem: Nutrient solution derived from fish waste vs . inorganic nutrient solution. Horticulturae, 7: 292. Go to original source...
    2. Arancon N.Q., Owens J.D., Converse C. (2019): The effects of vermicompost tea on the growth and yield of lettuce and tomato in a non-circulating hydroponics system. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 42: 2447-2458. Go to original source...
    3. Churilova E.V., Midmore D.J. (2019): Vermiliquer (Vermicompost Leachate) as a complete liquid fertilizer for hydroponically-grown Pak Choi (Brassica chinensis L.) in the tropics. Horticulturae, 5: 26. Go to original source...
    4. Czeka³a W., Maliñska K., Cáceres R., Cáceres R., Dach J., Lewicki A. (2016): Co-composting of poultry manure mixtures amended with biochar - The effect of biochar on temperature and C-CO2 emission. Bioresource Technology, 200: 921-927. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    5. Das D., Abbhishek K., Banik P., Bhattacharya P. (2021): A valorisation approach in recycling of organic wastes using low-grade rock minerals and microbial culture through vermicomposting. Environmental Challenges, 5: 100225. Go to original source...
    6. Hayat S., Ahmad H., Ali M., Ren K., Cheng Z. (2018): Aqueous garlic extract stimulates growth and antioxidant enzymes activity of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). Scientia Horticulturae, 240: 139-146 Go to original source...
    7. Jindo K., Sánchez-Monedero M.A., Hernández T., García C., Furukawa T., Matsumoto K., Sonoki T., Bastida F. (2012): Biochar influences the microbial community structure during manure composting with agricultural wastes. The Science of the Total Environment, 416: 476-481. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    8. Kumari A., Ahli F. (2019): Vermitechnology leachate: an eco-friendly innovative technology for better crop production. Journal of AgriSearch, 6: 25-27.
    9. Majid M., Khan J.N., Shas Q.M.A., Masoodi K.Z., Afrozo B., Parvaze S. (2020): Evaluation of hydroponic systems for the cultivation of lettuce ( Lactuca sativa L., var. Longifolia ) and comparison with protected soil-based cultivation. Agricultural Water Management, 245: 106572. Go to original source...
    10. Mampholo B.M., Maboko M., Soundy P., Sivakumar D. (2019): Postharvest responses of hydroponically grown lettuce varieties to nitrogen application rate. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 18: 2272-2283. Go to original source...
    11. Saba S., Zara G., Bianco A., Garau M., Bonono M., Deroma M., Pais A., Budroni M., (2019): Bioresource technology comparative analysis of vermicompost quality produced from brewers' spent grain and cow manure by the red earthworm Eisenia fetida. Bioresource Technology, 293: 122019. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    12. Silva M.E.F., de Lemos L.T., Nunes O.C., Cunha-Queda A.C. (2014): Influence of the composition of the initial mixtures on the chemical composition, physicochemical properties and humic-like substances content of composts. Waste Managenement, 34: 21-27. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    13. Spehia R.S., Devi M., Singh J., Sharma. S., Negi A., Singh S., Chauhan N., Sharma D., Sharma J.C. (2018): Lettuce growth and yield in hoagland solution with an organic concoction. International Journal of Vegetable Science, 24: 557-566. Go to original source...
    14. Singh R.S., Devi M., Singh J., Sharma A., Negi A., Singh S., Chauhan N., Sharma D., Sharma J.C. (2020): Soil properties changes earthworm diversity indices in different agro-ecosystem. BMC Ecology, 20: 27. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    15. Takahashi S., Namioka Y., Azis H.R., Sano T., Aono M., Koshiyama M., Fujisawa H., Isoda H. (2021): Prohydrojasmon promotes the accumulation of phenolic compounds in red leaf lettuce. Plants, 10: 1920. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    16. Tomov A., Petrova D., Yocheva L., Georgieva Z., Karcheva Z., Chaneva G. ( 2021): Antioxidant status of hydroponically and aquaponically grown plant species. Oxidation Communications, 44: 397-408.
    17. Vázquez-Hernández M.C., Parola-Contreras I., Montoya-Gómez L.M., Torres-Pacheco I., Schwarz D., Guevara-González R.G. (2019): Eustressors : Chemical and physical stress factors used to enhance vegetables production. Scientia Horticulturae, 250: 223-229. Go to original source...

    This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY NC 4.0), which permits non-comercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original publication is properly cited. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.


    Return to the content