AbstractHigh nitrogen (N) fertilisation is a major cause of nitrate (NO3) accumulationin lettuce. With the objective of reducing N usage without compromising quality,growth responses in lettuce to low N levels were investigated to better understandplant plasticity reactions, expressed by partitioning and mineral content, A greenhouseexperiment was conducted with red oakleaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. ‘Shiraz’)grown under hydroponic conditions for 4 weeks with six N application levels (40, 75,150, 400, 1200, 2400 mg L-1 N). Commercial lettuce hydroponic fertiliser, in which alltraces of N were removed, was applied equally as base fertiliser to all pots. Both basefertiliser and N levels (applied as Calnitrate at 19% Ca; 15.5% N) were appliedmanually on alternate days throughout the experiment. At the end of the trial leafnitrates, yield, total N, carbon (C) and dry matter were measured in roots andleaves. Nitrates were high (5700 and 10000 mg kg-1 DW) in leaves grown under 1200and 2400 mg L-1 N, respectively. Leaf nitrate content was lower and consideredacceptable (26 to 200 mg kg-1 DW) in plants grown under N <1200 mg L-1. Growthcurves followed the expected N plasticity responses for shoots, C:N and root:shoot(R/S) ratios showed an exponential decay with maximum or minimum at 400 mg L-1N. No significant differences were found between the 400, 1200 and 2400 mg L-1 Ntreatments for these variables, indicating that 400 mg L-1 N was the idealapplication rate. Calcium (Ca) leaf content showed an exponential growth curve ofabsorption. The results show that high quality lettuce can be grown hydroponicallywith low nitrate levels and desired mineral accumulation by manipulating plantresponses without decreasing yield substantially.
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