Abstract
Abstract Perlite is an excellent medium for growing greenhouse tomatoes. Reusing perlite without processing to grow successive tomato crops is potentially risky because of media compaction, salt buildup, and pest contamination. Replacing used perlite with new medium to raise every tomato crop is costly and recovering the expense by selling the fruit at a higher price may not work well in a competitive market. A study was conducted in a greenhouse to determine if stirring used perlite with an auger mounted on an electric drill and disinfecting the stirred medium with hot water would be more economical than replacing the medium with new perlite, and have no negative impact on yield of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill). Results indicated that stirring and disinfecting used perlite for recycling saved 78% of the cost to replace the medium, and reduced medium EC, N03-N, K, and Na contents by 50, 50, 72, and 43%, respectively. The residual salt after treating the media with hot water was mostly within the optimum level recommended for growing plants in containers. Disinfecting used perlite with hot water raised media temperature to at least 71°C. The high media temperature lasted longer than one-hr above the 50°C limit defined by some researchers as necessary to kill several fungi and nematodes. Tomatoes planted in the stirred and disinfected used perlite produced significantly higher marketable yield (6.57 kg/plant) than those planted in new perlite (6.25 kg/plant). Season and year of planting also significantly affected yield. In this study, the perlite was stirred and disinfected four times. Assuming that growers stir and disinfect the media once a year, this technique can be used for four years without negative impact on yield. It may be that stirring and disinfecting perlite for recycling may extend the usefulness of the medium beyond four years.
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Claims 12
Claim · model-written summary
Stirring and disinfecting used perlite saved 78% of the replacement cost.
- Taxon
- tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Treatment
- stirring and disinfecting used perlitee0
- Outcome
- coste0
- Direction
- savede0
- Value
- 78%e0
- Comparator
- replace the mediume0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“stirring and disinfecting used perlite for recycling saved 78% of the cost to replace the medium”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Stirring and disinfecting used perlite reduced medium EC by 50%.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- stirring and disinfecting used perlitee1
- Outcome
- medium ECe0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 50e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“reduced medium EC, N03-N, K, and Na contents by 50, 50, 72, and 43%, respectively”
e1“stirring and disinfecting used perlite for recycling”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Stirring and disinfecting used perlite reduced medium N03-N content by 50%.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- stirring and disinfecting used perlitee1
- Outcome
- N03-Ne0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 50e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“reduced medium EC, N03-N, K, and Na contents by 50, 50, 72, and 43%, respectively”
e1“stirring and disinfecting used perlite for recycling”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Stirring and disinfecting used perlite reduced medium K content by 72%.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- stirring and disinfecting used perlitee1
- Outcome
- Ke0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 72e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“reduced medium EC, N03-N, K, and Na contents by 50, 50, 72, and 43%, respectively”
e1“stirring and disinfecting used perlite for recycling”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Stirring and disinfecting used perlite reduced medium Na content by 43%.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- stirring and disinfecting used perlitee1
- Outcome
- Na contentse0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 43%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“reduced medium EC, N03-N, K, and Na contents by 50, 50, 72, and 43%, respectively”
e1“stirring and disinfecting used perlite for recycling”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Residual salt after hot-water treatment was mostly within the recommended optimum for container plants.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- treating the media with hot watere0
- Outcome
- residual salte0
- Direction
- within the optimum levele0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The residual salt after treating the media with hot water was mostly within the optimum level recommended for growing plants in containers”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Hot water disinfection raised used-perlite temperature to at least 71°C.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- Disinfecting used perlite with hot watere0
- Outcome
- media temperaturee0
- Direction
- raisede0
- Value
- at least 71°Ce0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Disinfecting used perlite with hot water raised media temperature to at least 71°C”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
The heated medium stayed above 50°C for longer than one hour.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- high media temperaturee0
- Direction
- abovee0
- Value
- 50°Ce0
- Qualifier
- longer than one-hre0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The high media temperature lasted longer than one-hr above the 50°C limit”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Tomato marketable yield was significantly higher in stirred and disinfected used perlite, at 6.57 kg/plant, than in new perlite, at 6.25 kg/plant.
- Taxon
- TomatoesSolanum lycopersicume0
- Treatment
- stirred and disinfected used perlitee0
- Outcome
- marketable yielde0
- Direction
- highere0
- Value
- 6.57 kg/plante0
- Qualifier
- 6.25 kg/plante0
- Comparator
- new perlitee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Tomatoes planted in the stirred and disinfected used perlite produced significantly higher marketable yield (6.57 kg/plant) than those planted in new perlite (6.25 kg/plant)”
Claim · model-written summary
Planting season significantly affected tomato yield.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- yielde0
- Setting
- Seasone0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Season and year of planting also significantly affected yield”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
Planting year significantly affected tomato yield.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- yielde0
- Setting
- year of plantinge0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Season and year of planting also significantly affected yield”
t0“Tomato Production”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors conclude that stirring and disinfecting perlite annually can support tomato production for four years without reducing yield.
- Taxon
- tomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- stir and disinfect the media once a yeare1
- Outcome
- used for four years without negative impact on yielde0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“this technique can be used for four years without negative impact on yield”
e1“stir and disinfect the media once a year”
t0“Tomato Production”
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