Nutrient concentrations in the cherry tomato under application management of the nutrient solution with brackish water

ABSTRACT The aim of this work was to evaluate nutrient concentration in the leaf tissue of plants of the cherry tomato 'Rita', cultivated in a hydroponic system using water with increasing levels of salinity in the preparation of the nutrient solution, submitting the plants to different periods of exposure to salinity and irrigation frequency. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse under a hydroponic system in pots containing substrate. The experimental design was of completely randomised blocks in a 6 x 2 x 2 factorial scheme, with six levels of salinity for the nutrient solution (3.01, 4.51, 5.94, 7.34, 8.71 and 10.40 dS m-1), two periods of plant exposure to salinity (51 and 6 days), and two irrigation frequencies (one irrigation per day and one irrigation every two days). The concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulphur, sodium and chlorine were evaluated in the leaf tissue of the plants. The use of brackish water in the preparation of the nutritent solution promoted the effect of antagonistic interactions between the nutrients, affecting their concentrations. The increase in salinity resulted in increases in the concentration of sodium and chlorine, and a reduction in the concentration of potassium and nitrogen in the leaf tissue. The shorter exposure time of the plants to salinity resulted in smaller reductions in the concentration of potassium and nitrogen, and decreased the concentration of sodium and chlorine. Irrigation every two days affected the concentration of nitrogen, calcium and magnesium in the leaves.