Agronomic Traits of Soilless Grown Bell Pepper

Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is the second most common crop grown by hydroponics in Croatia. The aim of this research was to determine the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of five cultivars, grown on rockwool. Depending on the cultivar, from 85 to 132.5 marketable fruits, weighing from 110 to 128 g were picked per m(2). Marketable yields from 9.65 to 17.18 kg.m(-2) were achieved, with statistically significant differences between the cultivars. The proportion of unmarketable fruits with blossom-end rot symptoms in the total fruit numbers was between 14.6 and 29.4%. During the harvest period, fruit samples for qualitative analysis were collected once a month. The fruit dry matter content of the cultivars was between 5.83 and 6.59%, while the soluble dry matter content varied from 3.86 to 4.53%. The highest dry matter content (6.62%) was determined in July, and the highest soluble dry matter content in August (4.57%). The greatest variation among cultivars and sampling dates was recorded in the L-ascorbic acid content. The determined amounts varied from 8.14 to 24.37 mg per 100 g of fresh weight. The highest L-ascorbic acid amount (22.91 mg per 100 g) was found in fruits harvested in June, and the lowest (7.86 mg per 100 g) in August. Based on the one year research results, cultivar 'Menta' could be recommended for hydroponic cultivation on rockwool. This cultivar achieved the highest yield and developed the highest fruit weights, also the incidence of blossom-end rot was lower than with the majority of the other cultivars. Despite the relatively high dry and soluble dry matter content, the amount of L-ascorbic acid was several times lower than literature citations.