(301) Screening Carrot Cultivars for Adaptabilityto Growth in a Nutrient Film Hydroponics System

Abstract

Tuskegee University is conducting research on salad crops as part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) goal of supporting humans on near-term space missions, such as on the International Space Station. Small areas of salad crops are ideal candidates for growing in limited volumes, and would provide a source of fresh food to enhance the crew's nutrition. Baseline controlled environment studies were initiated to evaluate the response of eight carrot cultivars (`Baby Mini', `Nantes Touchan', `Danvers 126', `Kundulus', `Nanco Hybrid', `Thumbelina', `Early Nantes', and `Juwarot') to growth and yield in hydroponics. Seeds were sown in moist arcillite and transplanted into growth troughs (0.15 × 0.15 × 1.2 m) after 18 days in reach-in growth chambers, and nutrients continuously supplied by a half-Hoagland solution. Growth chambers conditions included 300 μmol·m -2 ·s -1 photosynthetic photon flux, 16/8 photoperiod, a constant 25 °C and relative humidity of 50%. Plants were harvested at about 80 days. All eight cultivars grew well in the hydroponic system. Seven cultivars produced greater shoot fresh than root mass except `Baby Mini', which showed the reverse. `Danvers 126', followed by `Nanco Hybrid' and `Nantes Touchan', produced highest root yields. The β-carotene content varied by cultivars. The highest level of 10,400 IU/100 g was obtained for `Thumbelina', followed by `Baby Mini' (8040 IU/100 g), `Juwarot' (6160 IU/100g), and `Early Nantes' (5210 IU/100 g), and the lowest by `Nantes Touchan' (3510 IU/100 g). These results show that while carrots adapted well to growth in hydroponics, carotene, a major nutrient, was at relatively low levels.