Electrolytic Disinfection of Irrigation Water for Intensive Crop Production in Greenhouses as Demonstrated on Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum Mill)

Abstract

Shortage of water availability and awareness of the need for sustainable resource management have generated a significant increase in the use of recycled water for irrigation and processing of crops and harvest products, respectively. As a result, irrigation systems face the challenge of neutralizing plant pathogens to reduce the risk of their dispersal and the subsequent occurrence of diseases with potentially high economic impacts. We evaluated the efficacy of an innovative electrolytic disinfection system based on potassium hypochlorite (KCLO) to inactivate major pathogens in hydroponically grown tomatoes: Fusarium oxysporum (Synder and Hans), Rizocthonia solani (Kühn), Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and Pepino mosaic virus (PepMV). The electrolytically derived disinfectant was prepared on-site and added to the recirculating fertigation solution once a week for 60 min in an automated manner using sensor technology at a dosage of 0.5 mg of free chlorine/L (fertigation solution at pH 6.0 ± 0.3 and ORP 780 ± 31 mV). Tomato fruit yield and pathogen dispersal were determined for 16 weeks. At the applied dosage, the disinfectant has been shown to inhibit the spread of plant pathogenic fungi and, remarkably, plant viruses in recirculating fertigation solutions. Phytotoxic effects did not occur.

Effect on Vegetative Growth and Development of Strawberry (Fragaria ananassa) in Potting Mixture System under Shade Net Conditions cv. Winter Dawn

“…In addition to this, it promotes aeration, which in turn leads to the construction of healthier root systems, which in turn allows for greater nutrient uptake, which is necessary for appropriate growth and production of strawberries [18]. Similar results were observed by Gowda [19] and Rodriguez et al [20] while working on tomatoes.…”

Dynamics of Water Quality and Deficit Irrigation on Residual Soil Micronutrients, Carbon Sequestration and Crop Productivity in a Greenhouse Environment

“…which are cumulatively giving pressure to use agricultural water more judicial, systematic & efficient [10]. Therefore, there is both need and scope to reassess different sources of water for irrigation and application of scientific water management approaches for sustainable agricultural production.…”

Applicability of Different Methods for Quantifying Virucidal Efficacy Using MENNO Florades and Tomato Brown Rugose Fruit Virus as an Example

“…Most of these chemicals are not registered and approved as plant protectants in the EU. So far, some studies have been carried out to identify disinfectants against ToBRFV and tobamoviruses for seed treatment [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ], soil disinfection [ 30 , 31 ], cloth washing [ 9 ], shoes [ 32 ], water and nutrition disinfection [ 33 , 34 , 35 ], tool dipping [ 22 , 36 , 37 , 38 ], and inactivation of the virus in plant sap or inoculum [ 36 ]. Selection of the most efficient disinfectants and, later, investigation of their impact on the environment is essential.…”