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Combining health-promoting nutrition with gastronomic novelty is a major trend currently driving the agri-food sector. Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) is a genetically diverse aromatic vegetable crop that combines rich phytochemical composition and enticing sensory profile. The current review examines how genetic variation underlies the phytochemical composition, nutrient composition, and volatile aromatic compounds of basil. It further provides a critical assessment of preharvest factors that configure product quality, including nutrient modulation, controlled stress, biofortification, biostimulant and light management applications. Appropriate genotype selection may facilitate sustainable production of improved quality, whereas targeted preharvest applications combined with optimized light intensity and spectral quality may effectively increase the content of essential phytochemicals and micronutrients, while suppressing the accumulation of anti-nutritive agents. The application of biostimulants may further underpin the sustainability factor in basil production, especially under growth-limiting conditions. The current review constitutes a critical synopsis of all available scientific literature investigating key factors configuring the composition of basil in minerals, bioactive secondary metabolites, micronutrients and volatile aromatic compounds from 1996 to 2022. Topics warranting further research are highlighted, with emphasis placed in identifying optimal combinations within the genotype-environment-management interaction nexus that tap the physiological and molecular mechanisms responsible for improving plant performance and functional-sensory quality in basil.

In Europe, most greenhouse vegetable crops are grown in soil. Where soilless systems are used, apart from in The Netherlands, Belgium and France, they are mostly free-draining systems, in which nutrient solutions are not recirculated. Both soil-grown and free-draining soilless systems commonly have large nitrate (NO3−) leaching loss. Irrigation is a major contributing factor to NO3− leaching loss. Irrigation management of greenhouse vegetable crops needs to be improved to reduce the appreciable N loss to subterranean water and surface water bodies. This article reviews the state-of-the-art, of methods and tools that are available, or are being developed, to optimise irrigation management of both soil- and soilless-grown vegetable crops in greenhouses. Adaptions for greenhouse conditions and cropping cycles of the FAO56 approach to calculate crop water requirements are reviewed. Attention is paid to (i) the developments and suitability of various adaptations of the Penman–Monteith FAO56 equation and simpler equations to calculate reference crop evapotranspiration (ETO), and (ii) equations to calculate crop coefficient (Kc) values under greenhouse conditions, in which cropping cycles may differ appreciably from those of outdoor crops. The various classes of soil/substrate moisture sensors that have been used in greenhouse crops are reviewed, regarding their general suitability and practical use. Their use in both soil and substrate is considered, as are the effects of salinity and the use of some sensors to measure the salinity of the growing media. The use of various plant sensors with vegetable crops under greenhouse conditions is reviewed. The results of a survey that assessed, for greenhouse vegetable crops in Europe, the use of different (a) types of irrigation systems, and (b) irrigation management methods, for both soil and soilless production are presented. Following the revision of this information, recommendations are made regarding the scientific and practical value of the available tools and technologies to aid growers to optimise irrigation management of vegetable crops grown in greenhouses.

The data presented in this article were derived from dry and fresh samples of soilless-grown butterhead lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. var. Capitata). Organic acids, total nitrogen, sulphate and total chlorophyll concentrations varied in response to cultivar (red or green butterhead Salanova) and to nutrient solution macrocation ratios (high proportion of K, Ca or Mg). Kjeldahl, spectrophotometry and ion chromatography were the principal employed methods. Data of total nitrogen and sulphate concentrations contribute to the understanding of macrocation uptake by plants and may drive prospective relevant research. Organic acids are indicators of plant tolerance to stress, including nutrient deficiencies, and the variability of their concentrations provide insights to plant stress physiology. The data reported in this paper are related to the research article “The bioactive profile of lettuce produced in a closed soilless system as configured by combinatorial effects of genotype and macrocation supply composition”, authored by El-Nakhel et al. (2020) [1]. Keywords: Lactuca sativa.L, Malate, Tartrate, Oxalate, Citrate, Isocitrate, NFT, Growth chamber

The effect of cultivar and nutrient solution macrocation proportions (SK, SCa, SMg) on the bioactive content of hydroponically cultivated lettuce was evaluated on two lettuce cultivars (red and green-pigmented Salanova®) grown in a fully controlled Fitotron® chamber. Fresh weight and color attributes were superior in green Salanova and in SK-treated plants, while elevated macrocation proportions (SK, SCa, and SMg) affected the corresponding minerals, P and Na content. SCa and SMg treatments raised ascorbate concentration and reduced nitrate levels in treated plants. Chicoric and chlorogenic acids were higher in red over green Salanova. Chlorogenic acid was higher in SCa and SMg plants and chicoric acid levels were SMg > SCa > SK. The SMg-treated red Salanova contained higher concentrations of target carotenoids. In conclusion, nutrient solution management constitutes an effective cultural practice to increase bioactive properties and functional quality of hydroponically grown lettuce.

Consumers interest for organic agriculture and environmental-friendly agricultural products is increasing. Nevertheless, cultivation protocols in organic farming are not sufficiently standardized to guarantee product quality stability, a parameter which is critical for further expansion of this niche market. Variable responses in terms of quality and quantity of the harvested product often arise from complex interactions between agronomic and environmental factors. Here we report on the effects of different levels of nitrogen fertilization (0, 50, 150, 200 kg N ha(-1)) and irrigation regime (50% and 100% replenishment of the evaporation determined using a Class A pan, plus a non-irrigated control) on yield and accumulation of primary metabolites of two potato cultivars (Agria and Merit) grown under conventional and organic farming systems. Organic farming caused a 25% marketable yield reduction with a higher percentage of large tubers under conventional farming, whereas irrigation increased the marketable yield and the percentage of large tubers. Nitrogen fertilization affected the marketable yield and significantly interacted with the irrigation regime in modifying potato yield and quality. Farming protocol, cultivar, irrigation and nitrogen fertilization all affected both amino acid contents and composition with a significant decrease of most essential amino acids in coincidence with highest nitrogen levels. An increased water availability caused an accumulation of reducing sugars in potato tubers only in organic farming, whereas such accumulation was not observed under conventional farming. These results indicate that cultivar-specific genetic determinants and cultivation factors, including the farming system, may strongly and specifically interact to affect important quality parameters of potato tubers. This should be considered to improve quality standards in organic farming. Consumers interest for organic agriculture and environmental-friendly agricultural products is increasing. Nevertheless, cultivation protocols in organic farming are not sufficiently standardized to guarantee product quality stability, a parameter which is critical for further expansion of this niche market. Variable responses in terms of quality and quantity of the harvested product often arise from complex interactions between agronomic and environmental factors. Here we report on the effects of different levels of nitrogen fertilization (0, 50, 150, 200 kg N ha(-1)) and irrigation regime (50% and 100% replenishment of the evaporation determined using a Class A pan, plus a non-irrigated control) on yield and accumulation of primary metabolites of two potato cultivars (Agria and Merit) grown under conventional and organic farming systems. Organic farming caused a 25% marketable yield reduction with a higher percentage of large tubers under conventional farming, whereas irrigation increased the marketable yield and the percentage of large tubers. Nitrogen fertilization affected the marketable yield and significantly interacted with the irrigation regime in modifying potato yield and quality. Farming protocol, cultivar, irrigation and nitrogen fertilization all affected both amino acid contents and composition with a significant decrease of most essential amino acids in coincidence with highest nitrogen levels. An increased water availability caused an accumulation of reducing sugars in potato tubers only in organic farming, whereas such accumulation was not observed under conventional farming. These results indicate that cultivar-specific genetic determinants and cultivation factors, including the farming system, may strongly and specifically interact to affect important quality parameters of potato tubers. This should be considered to improve quality standards in organic farming. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A field experiment was carried out on maize (Zea mays, L.) to study the effects of different fertilizer management on nitrogen status in soil and plant response. Three different fertilizers, mineral (MN), mineral plus buffalo manure (MN + BM) and organo-mineral with peat (OMP), were added at the usual (140, 61 and 116 kg ha−1) and the reduced (70, 31 and 58 kg ha−1) rates of N, P and K. respectively. Soil samples were analyzed for N by both the Kjeldahl method and the electro-ultrafiltration technique (EUF). The soil Kjeldahl-N concentrations were scarcely affected by the different fertilizer treatments, while the EUF-N concentrations were closely correlated with the amounts of N added. The EUF also discriminated between the NO3-N and the sum of the ammonium and the easily extractable organic N forms (EUF-Norg + NH4). The largest proportions of EUF-Norg + NH4 were found in the untreated plots and in the plots treated with buffalo manure. The different fertilizer treatments significantly affected grain yield, which ranged from a minimum of 6.3 t ha−1 from the untreated plots, to a maximum of 11.9 t ha−1 from those supplied with 140 kg N, 61 kg P and 116 kg K ha−1 by OMP fertilizer. The highest agronomic efficiency index for N was exhibited in the OMP treatment at the reduced rate. The grain yield was closely correlated with the total extractable EUF-N, but different relationships were found between the rate of N added, the level of EUF-NO,-N in soil and grain yield for the different fertilizer treatments.