Growth and yield performance of kale (Brassica oleracea L. var. acephala) in organic-based soilless substrates under greenhouse conditions

Abstract

Soil degradation and limited arable land continue to constrain vegetable production in upland areas of the Philippines. This study evaluated the growth and yield performance of kale (Brassica oleracea L. var. acephala) grown in organic-based soilless substrates under greenhouse conditions. A Completely Randomized Design (CRD) was employed with 5 treatments replicated three times. The treatments consisted of combinations of Processed Chicken Manure (PCM), Carbonized Rice Hull (CRH) and various organic additives, including Vermicompost (VC), Coconut Coir Dust (CCD), Spent Mushroom Compost (SMC) and a control (garden soil + river sand). Growth parameters measured included plant height (PH), root length (RL) and root weight (RW), while yield components comprised leaf length (LL), leaf number (LN), economic yield (EY), biological yield (BY) and harvest index (HI). Results showed that Treatment 1 (PCM + CRH + VC) and Treatment 3 (PCM + CRH + SMC) produced the tallest plants, longest leaves and highest yields. Treatment 2 (PCM + CRH + CCD) promoted superior root development, whereas the control (T₅) recorded the lowest performance in both growth and yield attributes. Organic-based soilless substrates, particularly those enriched with VC or SMC, significantly enhance kale growth and productivity under controlled conditions. The use of these sustainable substrate formulations offers a viable approach to improving vegetable production in land-constrained and ecologically fragile upland environments, supporting the goals of sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture.

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Claims 5

Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultpositivemeasured

Claim · model-written summary

PCM + CRH + VC produced the tallest kale plants, longest leaves and highest yields.

Taxon: kaleBrassica oleracea var. viridist0
Treatment: Treatment 1 (PCM + CRH + VC)e0
Outcome: tallest plants, longest leaves and highest yieldse0
Direction: higheste0

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

*Brassica oleracea var. viridis* · TaxonAnn Perry · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons ↗

Verbatim

e0
“Treatment 1 (PCM + CRH + VC) and Treatment 3 (PCM + CRH + SMC) produced the tallest plants, longest leaves and highest yields”
✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 892–1017 · show in text ↑

t0
“Growth and yield performance of kale (Brassica oleracea L. var. acephala) in organic-based soilless substrates under greenhouse conditions”
✓ located verbatim in the source · title, characters 0–138 · show in text ↑

Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultpositivemeasured

Claim · model-written summary

PCM + CRH + SMC produced the tallest kale plants, longest leaves and highest yields.

Taxon: kaleBrassica oleracea var. viridist0
Treatment: Treatment 3 (PCM + CRH + SMC)e0
Outcome: tallest plants, longest leaves and highest yieldse0
Direction: higheste0

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim

e0
“Treatment 1 (PCM + CRH + VC) and Treatment 3 (PCM + CRH + SMC) produced the tallest plants, longest leaves and highest yields”
✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 892–1017 · show in text ↑

t0
“Growth and yield performance of kale (Brassica oleracea L. var. acephala) in organic-based soilless substrates under greenhouse conditions”
✓ located verbatim in the source · title, characters 0–138 · show in text ↑

Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultpositivemeasured

Claim · model-written summary

PCM + CRH + CCD gave superior root development.

Taxon: kaleBrassica oleracea var. viridist0
Treatment: Treatment 2 (PCM + CRH + CCD)e0
Outcome: root developmente0
Direction: superiore0

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim

e0
“Treatment 2 (PCM + CRH + CCD) promoted superior root development”
✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 1019–1083 · show in text ↑

t0
“Growth and yield performance of kale (Brassica oleracea L. var. acephala) in organic-based soilless substrates under greenhouse conditions”
✓ located verbatim in the source · title, characters 0–138 · show in text ↑

Observationobservedoriginal resultnegativemeasured

Claim · model-written summary

The control had the lowest growth and yield performance.

Taxon: kaleBrassica oleracea var. viridist0
Treatment: control (T₅)e0
Outcome: growth and yield attributese0
Direction: loweste0

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim

e0
“the control (T₅) recorded the lowest performance in both growth and yield attributes”
✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 1093–1177 · show in text ↑

t0
“Growth and yield performance of kale (Brassica oleracea L. var. acephala) in organic-based soilless substrates under greenhouse conditions”
✓ located verbatim in the source · title, characters 0–138 · show in text ↑

Intervention effectobservedoriginal resultpositivesignificant (as stated)measured

Claim · model-written summary

Organic-based soilless substrates significantly enhanced kale growth and productivity.

Taxon: kaleBrassica oleracea var. viridise0
Treatment: Organic-based soilless substratese0
Outcome: kale growth and productivitye0
Direction: enhancee0

Not reportedComparator

Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.

Verbatim

e0
“Organic-based soilless substrates, particularly those enriched with VC or SMC, significantly enhance kale growth and productivity under controlled conditions”
✓ located verbatim in the source · abstract, characters 1179–1336 · show in text ↑

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Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.

Abstract

Claims 5

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