Cultivation of Different Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) Genotypes in Substrate Culture and NFT-System

The development of an Asian (subsp. orientale) and a European (subsp. occidentale) eggplant genotype was studied under greenhouse conditions to evaluate their productivity potential. The Dutch cultivar 'Ritmo' (RZ) and the Asian clone '1507' were investigated from May to August 2006. In this experiment, two hydroponic systems the 'Substrate Culture' and Nutrient-Film-Technique (NFT) were compared. Plants were cultivated in containers filled with perlite, on peat slabs and in NFT with EC values 2 and 4 in the nutrient solution, respectively. In each treatment, 15 plants were analysed. The plant density was 1.9 plants m(-2). Vegetative growth and yield were evaluated as well as the mineral content of fruits. The substrate clearly affected vegetative growth parameters such as shoot length, leaf/stem fresh weight ratio and generative parameters such as yield; however the effects were primarily genotype dependent. While vegetative growth of Asian clone '1507' was generally stronger than of 'Ritmo', yield was in dependence of the culture system similar, higher or lower. The Asian genotype showed better adaptation to higher EC values and heat stress in comparison with the European genotype.