The role of nutrient solution composition on the uptake of nutrients, growth and vase life of tulips grown hydroponically under South African conditions. Geline Derbyshire, Eleanor W Hoffman and Estelle Kempen. South African Journal of Plant and Soil 2015, 32(3): 129–137

1. The role of nutrient solution
composition on the uptake of nutrients,
growth and vase life of tulips grown
hydroponically under South African
conditions
Geline Derbyshire, Eleanor W Hoffman and Estelle Kempen
South African Journal of Plant and Soil 2015, 32(3): 129–137
01-Feb-201701-Feb-2017
- Dhriti SatyaProf. Dr. agr. sc. Margarethe Serek

2. 2
Introduction :
South Africa : Warm production region (≠ Tulip production)
Marketing!
Advantages-
Infrastructure
Labor
Abundance natural resources
Establish export market through fynbos sector
Difficult to produce cut-tulip-
Climatic conditions
Expensive climate control
Producers dependent on imported bulb
Tulip bulbs are imported
Some are planted first in season => Early-forced bulb
and others are stored dry to plant later in season => Late-forced bulb

3. 3
Introduction :
Tulip bulb force to grow hydroponically
Soilless culture => Control root-zone environment
(Nutrient management)
Assume to increase the tulip’s vase life, healthy
scape and leaves and also flowering
Flowering
depends on
- Bulb fertility
- Composition of growing medium
- Use of supplementary nutrients

4. Plant material
Standard Steiner solution
(South Africa)
2 Bulb maturities
4 commercial tulip cultivar
Belgium (Europe)
Amended solution
(Europe + NH4+)
‘Leen van der Mark’ ‘Jan van Nes’, ‘Royal Virgin’ Ile de France
10-12cm
4
Materials and methods:
:
Nutrient solutions

5. Plant material
60cm
40cm
10cm
X (12 forcing trays)
 3 bulbs per cultivar per tray were randomly labeled.
 48 bulbs were planted randomly in 12 forcing trays to represent 12 bulbs of each
cultivar in a split-plot design.
Prior to harvest so as to
eliminate bias -
• Growth measurements
• Postharvest evaluations
• Nutrient analysis.
unlabelled, marketable plants were
to be used in the vase-life studies
Materials and methods:
5

6. Treatments
In glasshouse
1st -: In October 2012
Performed immediately after arrival of the
bulbs in South Africa (thus termed the
early-forcing bulbs)
2nd -: In March 2013
Bulbs stored dry for > 6 months were
used (late forcing bulbs). These bulbs
subsequently differed in their
physiological age prior to rooting and
forcing.
•EC of 1.6–1.8 mS/cm
•pH 5.5–7.0
• Replaced weekly
Four nutrient solutions
Current SA Standard Steiner Europe Europe + NH4
+
+ micronutrients + micronutrients + micronutrients-
Materials and methods:
:
6

7. Rooting
Immediately
after removal
from storage
bulbs were
rooted in
forcing trays in
a dark room at
3–4 °C
Nutrient flow
Bulb roots 3–5 cm in length; attained within
3 weeks for early-forcing bulbs &
1 week for late-forcing bulbs
Sensor
 The EC and pH of the nutrient solutions were monitored throughout the rooting
period and maintained.
 The nutrient solution was replaced weekly to prevent salinisation or depletion of
nutrients 7
Materials and methods:

8. Vegetative growth phase
The growth and
development
(expressed
as plant height in
mm) of three plants
per cultivar per tray
was recorded twice a
week.
Rooted bulbs
Glasshouse
(temperature 20 ± 2 °C,
relative humidity 55–65%)
8
Materials and methods:

9. Harvest
Min 300mm + Color change
dry mass of each
plant (g) was recorded
stems were evaluated
for
stem length (mm),
leaf area (cm2) and
plant fresh mass (g)
X (10 bunches)
of 8 flowers each per
nutrient solution
vase-life testsRetail simulation
9
Materials and methods:

10. Vase life
Evaluation of vase-life duration of each stem
• degree of wilting
• color loss of the tepals
• toppling of the stem and
• yellowing of the foliage.
 The day of first flower removal + 50% flower removal
was recorded.
 Vase life was terminated when >60% of tepals on a
particular flower were withered or a stem had toppled.
10
Materials and methods:

11. Figure 1: Effect of various cultivars and bulb age on the first 11 d of scape growth
(mm) of hydroponically forced cut tulips grown under warm climatic conditions
Significant cultivar growth differences
Scape growth
With later harvest,
• Cultivar emerge early
• Rate of stem elongation increase
• Sprouting increase
• More response to vernalisation
treatment
11
Results and discussion:
Scape length & Plant height non
significant to different nutrient
solutions.

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Figure 2: Effect of bulb age and cultivar on postharvest stem length (mm).
Stem length
Results and discussion:
21.7%longer
 More responsive
to vernalisation
35%longer
Longer production † stem elongation
Stem length non
significant to different
nutrient solutions.
Post harvest parameters

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Treatment Leaf area (cm2)
Current SA 224.10
Standard
Steiner
251.92
Europe 237.70
Europe +
NH4+
230.72
F-value 3.07
p-value 0.03
Significance *
* p < 0.05
Results and discussion:
Table: Effect of (a) nutrient solution on leaf area of cut tulips grown
hydroponically under warm climatic conditions.
Produced the
largest leaf area
Post harvest parameters
N content of leaves 
Regulate photosynthesis
and stimulate leaf
expansion
(b) Cultivars
Two cultivar had largest leaf area
whereas two had smallest.
 Different cultivar respond differently
to environmental factors
(c) Bulbs
Early-forced bulb = 333.5 cm2
Late-forced bulb = 138.6 cm2 (also
shorter stem)
Leaf formation  Initially by
reserves in bulb, later by
assimilates from leaves.
Increases until senescence

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Figure: Interactions between (a) nutrient solution and bulb age (b) cultivar and bulb age on the fresh
mass of cut tulips that were forced hydroponically under warm climatic conditions
lower Fresh Mass of late-forced bulbs ∝ Î t
to anthesis for the early-forced bulbs, and
thus longer exposure to nutrition and the
production of photosynthates.
 late-forced bulbs that were stored for a
longer period than early-forced bulbs
continue to respire at low rate during
storage. Thus they have fewer reserves
available for initial growth and emergence
of leaves, which may have resulted in a
smaller leaf area and thus less assimilates
available for further growth of new organs.
In turn this may have resulted in the
decreased FM for late-forced bulbs.
Results and discussion:

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Figure 4: Interactions between cultivar and bulb age on the dry mass of cut tulips grown
hydroponically under warm climate conditions
Results and discussion:
Dry mass CHO (photosynthesis)  90% DM
*
*
*
Difference less expected
 Genetic cultivar differences
Early forced bulbs increased DM –
longer time to flower (23 d w LFB 11d)
bulbs
 Nutrients accumulation + CHO
production over a longer period.
duration of bulb chilling received
The DM - not significantly affected by
the nutrient solution composition

16. Figure: Interactions between (a)
cultivar and bulb age and (b) nutrient
solution and bulb age on the vase life
of cut tulips grown hydroponically
under warm climatic conditions
16
Vase life
Results and discussion:
Water stress
terminate vase life
 EFB have higher
transpiration rate

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 Scape growth was not significantly influenced by applied nutrients
Tulip bulb contains sufficient reserves.
 Nutrition solution affected the leaf area of flowering stems  Marketability
 Nutrient solutions (Standard solution & Europe)  Highest quality cut flower &
longest vase life for all cultivar.
 Leen van der Mark – longest stem  Preferred for cut flower
 Leen van der Mark should be promoted under warm conditions.
 Early-forced bulb  Longer stem, sig. leaf area, increased fresh and dry weight.
Late-forced bulb  Scape grew rapidly, longest vase life
 Quality
 Optimized nutrient solution produce quality cut tulips, depending on the cultivar
and physiological bulb age.
Conclusions:

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Geline Derbyshire, Eleanor W Hoffman and Estelle Kempen, 2015. The role of
nutrient solution composition on the uptake of nutrients, growth and vase life
of tulips grown hydroponically under South African conditions. South African
Journal of Plant and Soil 2015, 32(3): 129–137.
Reference:

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