CULTURE OF TOMATO (Solanum lycopersicum) HYDROPONIC UNDER DIFFERENT LEVELS OF PHOSPHORUS AND POTASSIUM NUTRIENT SOLUTION

Abstract

Tomatoes are among the most consumed vegetables in the world, its annual production in Brazil is estimated at around four million tonnes. The objective was to study the effect of different doses of phosphorus and potassium on the growth of tomato grown hydroponically. The work was conducted in the greenhouse of the Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Federal Rural University of Amazonia, from October 2008 to January 2009, in nutrient solution. The experimental design was completely randomized factorial 3 x 3 (three doses of phosphorus and potassium three doses) with four replications. Each plot consisted of one plant per pot. There was no significant interaction for the factors evaluated. The treatments consisted of the combination P1K2 and P2K2 in better performance for plant height. For fresh weight of shoot and root fresh weight, P2K1 provided better growth compared to the other doses. In the total dry mass accumulation, the P1K1 and P2K1 treatments provided greater increments, 62.7 and 71.9 g plant-1 respectively. Based on this, the most effective treatment for the production of tomato was the P2K1, which promoted greater growth in all parameters evaluated.    KEYWORDS: Fertilizers, Soilless cultivation, Solanum lycopersicum.