Novel bioprocess for the cultivation of microalgae in hydroponic growing system of tomato plants

Abstract

Hydroponic growing systems and the application of natural biostimulant substances are becoming very attractive option for crop cultivation due to their economic relevance since they allow reduction in the use of fertilizer and increase the yield. In order to perform a hydroponic co-cultivation system of microalgae (Chlorella vulgaris or Scenedesmus quadricauda) and tomato plants, grown in Hoagland nutrient solution, their mutual effect and the influence of a natural biostimulant obtained by alkaline extraction from a digestate of agro-livestock residues (DHL) were evaluated. The results showed that the co-cultivation system positively affected the growth of both tomato plants and microalgae. The best option, aimed to a mutual benefit for both cultures, resulted to be the co-cultivation system of tomato plants and S. quadricauda in the presence of DHL, positively affecting the growth of tomato plants along with a great increase in microalgal biomass.