Optimizing Sulphur Delivery to Sub-irrigated, Pot-grown Chrysanthemums

Date

2019-01-04

Authors

Sutton, William

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

University of Guelph

Abstract

Greenhouse floriculture operations pose significant environmental risk due to the extensive use of fertilizer inputs and the generation of nutrient-rich wastewater. Here, we tested the hypothesis that sulphur (S) use efficiency of sub-irrigated, pot-grown chrysanthemums varies with supply and timing of S application. Two split-plot experiments (four blocks) were conducted with disbudded chrysanthemums grown under greenhouse conditions with S treatment (2.25 mmol L-1 supplied continuously over the crop cycle or 2.25, 1.125 and 0.5625 mmol L-1 S supplied during vegetative growth only) as the main plot and cultivar (‘Olympia’ and ‘Covington’) as the sub-plot. Morphological characteristics of plants with fully-expanded inflorescences were unaffected by S treatment. Construction of S and dry mass budgets revealed that S use efficiency increased significantly in both cultivars with decreasing S supply over the crop cycle. This study indicates that S delivery over the crop cycle can be markedly reduced, compared to typical commercial recommendations.

Description

Keywords

Sulphur, horticulture, nutrition, Chrysanthemum, Greenhouse, Sub-irrigation

Citation