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To exploit the full potential of plants, it is essential to provide an adequate water balance during critical growth stages. With knowledge of the substrate’s matric potential, it is possible to realistically measure the amount of water available to the plant. The objective of this research is to study the effect of the matric potential of the substrate on the growth of beans, lettuce, sweet peppers, watermelon, and cauliflower plants. The research goal was to evaluate the effect of the matric potential on the main fertigation parameters of horticultural plants. The plants were cultivated at the University of Almería (Spain) in a controlled chamber in a pot with 250 mL of coconut fiber substrate from block propagation. For treatments T15, T30, T45, and T60, new irrigation was applied when easily available water (EAW) depletion levels of 15, 30, 45, and 60% were reached, respectively. The efficiency of the use of water (WUE), nitrate (NUE), and potassium (KUE) was measured. From T15 to T60, a significant effect was found for the absorption of water, nitrate and potassium, WUE, NUE, and KUE. T60 reduced the plant growth by half. The largest growth was between 15 and 30% of the level of use of EAW. Two different models were constructed according to each plant. It is possible to have a small depletion in the available water and still have plant growth, if there is a balance between the air and water needs of the substrate.

The response of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) to Ammonium-N was studied in a multispan greenhouse under soilless culture using coir fiber as substrate. Ammonium-N application rates were 0, 2, 4, 6 an...

The response of root growth in containers has been studied in recent decades. The objective was to evaluate the effect of four types of containers on root and shoot growth. The containers were two shapes, round and square, and in some containers, internal vertical walls (IVWs) were placed that increased the internal container surface area with two substrates: perlite and coir fiber. Seedlings of cucumber, pepper, and tomato were transplanted. Two experiments were performed: vegetative growth and drought stress by partial decapitation and a period without fertigation. After decapitation, preexisting and new leaf area, dry biomass or the leaves, and stem were measured. The results revealed that the type of container had no effect, nor were there significant differences between substrates. The containers with IVWs exhibited an increase in biomass and the root surface. The total contact surface with the substrate of the four container types was closely related to the recorded plant growth. Thus, IVWs not only decrease mechanical problems of roots by preventing spiralling but also favor the production of biomass in vegetable plants and substantially increase the root, enabling the plants to manage water deficit and potentially improve posttransplant stress.

Recent studies show that vegetables at early stage of development contain higher amounts of phytonutrients and minerals, and lower amounts of nitrates than at fully developed stage. Nevertheless, the effects of some spectrum light on the carotenoid content of lettuce microgreens are unknown. Three different LED lamps were checked: (i) artificial white light (T0); (ii) continuous light-emitting diodes with longer blue-wavelength (T1), and (iii) continuous light-emitting diodes with longer red-wavelength (T2). Different lettuce cvs. were grown under the above described lamps. Plants were collected after 10, 15, 35 and 50 days from planting to produce sprouts, microgreens, initial baby leaf, and baby leaf, respectively. Response to different continuous spectrum lights related to productivity and nitrate content was variable for the different plants. Accumulation of nitrates at initial stages in plant tissues was clearly lower than at final stages of crop development, ranging from 50.2 to 73.4 mg 100 g1 fresh weight for T2. Lettuce consumption is preferable at microgreen stage in comparison with baby leaf stage. Nitrate amounts at microgreen stage were lower than in baby leaf stage, and this content was inversely correlated with carotenoid content, which in tissues was higher at microgreens stage influenced by LED.

Ahiflower oil© is extracted from the seeds of Buglossoides arvensis, which contains high amounts of stearidonic acid (SDA, 18:4n-3), while its phenolic composition still is unreported. Moreover, several Buglossoides taxa remain unstudied and could become natural sources of SDA. In this work, seeds of several Buglossoides taxa and Ahiflower oil© were screened for fatty acids, phenolic compounds, and in vitro antiproliferative activities against colorectal cancer cells. Four flavonoids and 16 phenolic acids were identified and quantified. Among Buglossoides taxa, the highest amounts of phenolic compounds were found in samples collected in Spain, under a warm Mediterranean climate. Rosmarinic and lithospermic acids were the main phenols found in Buglossoides seeds. The MTT assay showed dose- and time-dependent inhibitory effects of B. arvensis extracts on HT-29 cancer cells, with a GI

The presence of micro and nanoplastics in the food chain constitutes an emergent multifactorial food safety and physiological stress problem, which must be approached with a strategic perspective since it affects public health when consuming products that have this pollutant, such as fish and crustaceans, fruits, and vegetables. In this review, the authors present the results by scientists from different disciplines who are dedicated to discovering their chemical constitution and origin, the contents of these microparticles in edible plants, the contamination of water-irrigated soils, the mechanisms that concentrate microplastics in these soils, methods to determine them, contamination of freshwater sources of cities, and the negative effect of nano and microplastics on various food products and their detrimental impact on the environment. Recent findings of plant uptake mechanisms complement this, but more research is needed.

The use of microbial inoculants, particularly arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, has great potential for sustainable crop management, which aims to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. However, one of the major challenges of their use in agriculture is the variability of the inoculation effects in the field, partly because of the varying environmental conditions. Light intensity and quality affect plant growth and defense, but little is known about their impacts on the benefits of mycorrhizal symbioses. We tested the effects of five different light intensities on plant nutrition and resistance to the necrotrophic foliar pathogen Botrytis cinerea in mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal lettuce plants. Our results evidence that mycorrhiza establishment is strongly influenced by light intensity, both regarding the extension of root colonization and the abundance of fungal vesicles within the roots. Light intensity also had significant effects on plant growth, nutrient content, and resistance to the pathogen. The effect of the mycorrhizal symbiosis on plant growth and nutrient content depended on the light intensity, and mycorrhiza efficiently reduced disease incidence and severity under all light intensities. Thus, mycorrhiza-induced resistance can be uncoupled from mycorrhizal effects on plant nutrition. Therefore, mycorrhizal symbioses can be beneficial by providing biotic stress protection even in the absence of nutritional or growth benefits., This research was funded by Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, grant number RTI2018-094350-B-C31 and open access supported by CSIC.

The free discharge of drainage water from greenhouse horticultural production to the environment is a current environmental concern due to its capacity to contribute to environmental pollution. This has led to the search of sustainable alternatives for its reuse in the production of other crops. However, before the large-scale use of such horticultural leachates in ornamental plants, the effects of such fertigation treatments on ornamental plants need to be evaluated. Plants of rosemary were grown in pots with a mixture of sphagnum peatmoss and Perlite and subjected to three fertigation treatments: T0 (a standard nutrient solution or control), T1 (raw leachates from Cucumis melo) and T2 (a mixture of raw leachates from C. melo and tap water 1:1 v/v, over a period of 9 weeks. At the end of the experiment, the growth parameters, color of leaves as well as water and nutrient uptake efficiencies and their losses were assessed for each fertigation treatment. The total dry weight and the water use efficiency of rosemary plants decreased under the fertigation with raw and diluted leachates. In addition, rosemary plants were shorter compared to the control but there were no differences in leaf color between the fertigation treatments. The uptake of N, P and K were affected by the applied fertigation treatments in a different manner. The use of horticultural leachates in the production of ornamental plants (as shown here for melon and rosemary) is feasible and presents a viable option to reduce water and nutrient input in plant production.

Tomato fruit possess high lycopene concentrations, which increases after reaching the breaker stage of ripeness. Light emitting diode (LED) systems have emerged as a clean and efficient artificial lighting technique for use in horticulture. The objective of this research was to examine the effect of LEDs on postharvest and lycopene quality parameters. The effects on quality parameters were significantly different depending on the tomato fruit cultivar. The commercial and organoleptic quality parameters most affected were firmness and titratable acidity. The lycopene concentration in all tomato cultivars increased between 30% and 60% when they were exposed to LED light compared with dark-exposed fruit. One hour of LED light exposure per day during the postharvest phase of fruit increased commercial and organoleptic parameters, and increased the lycopene concentration. Fruit exposed to LED light with a high red:far red (R:FR) light ratio had increased firmness compared with those exposed to other types of white LED light. The highest R:FR ratio used in this study resulted in fruit with higher titratable acidity than those exposed to lower R:FR ratios. Overall, the results of this study demonstrated that the postharvest exposure of tomato fruit to LED light with a high R:FR ratio induces lycopene synthesis, with lycopene concentrations being 41% higher in comparison with exposure to darkness and 24% higher in comparison with exposure to other LED lighting conditions.

The effect of pH and silicon (Si) in the nutrient solution on the vegetative development of 2-year-old blueberry plants (Vaccinium corymbosum L. cv. Ventura) was studied. Two independent experiments were performed on coir fiber (CF) and sand as substrates. In experiment 1, Si was applied in the nutrient solution at a dose of 0.0, 0.3, 0.6, and 1.2 mm. In experiment 2, plants were treated with nutrient solution at pH 4.00, 4.75, 5.50, and 6.25, using two sources of acidification: nitric acid and citric acid. The parameters of plant growth, foliar surface, and stem biomass were measured. With the application of 1.2 mm Si to CF, plant height registered a significant increase of 8%, and shoot dry and fresh biomass increased by 21% and 25%, respectively. The results of experiment 1 indicated that the application of Si benefits the vegetative growth of blueberry plants in CF, but no effect was observed in the sand substrate. In the results of experiment 2, the pH level of 6.25 in CF decreased the dry weight of stems and leaves by 21% and 18%, respectively. A significant increase in the pH range of 4.00 to 5.50 was recorded in both the citric acid and nitric acid treatments, but these significant effects were not found in sand. Citric acid presented a similar behavior to nitric acid, which indicates that it can be a good source of acidification in organic and ecologically friendly crops.

The use of colored shade nets is a method to protect plants from direct solar radiation and optimize the light spectra they transmit. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), the photosynthetically active integrated radiation (IPAR), temperature, relative humidity, growth, production, and fruit quality of Physalis ixocarpa variety Tecozautla, cultivated under nets generating 60% shade in the colors beige, blue, green, red, and black and under a treatment without netting (control group). Different variables were observed: climatic variables, such as radiation, temperature, and relative humidity; growth variables, such as plant height and stem diameter; production variables, such as number, weight, and caliber of the fruit; and quality variables of the fruit, such as pH and total soluble solids. The highest PAR, IPAR, and temperature and lowest relative humidity were obtained in the absence of netting. The white net resulted in the highest PAR and IPAR but no difference in temperature or relative humidity. In addition, an increase in the height, stem diameter, number of branches, and weight, number, and size of the fruit was observed. The white net resulted in the highest yield: 88% higher than in the control group. The pH of the fruit was significantly higher under the white netting, and no differences among the treatments in terms of the content of total soluble solids were found.

La semilla de maíz de buena calidad es insumo estratégico para producir germinados como forraje alternativo para alimentación animal sobre todo en época de sequía y el almacenamiento prolongado conduce a pérdidas de germinabilidad y vigor en función del genotipo y ambiente. El estudio se desarrolló en el Instituto Tecnológico de Conkal en julio de 2011, el envejecimiento acelerado se aplicó a tres materiales de maíz (País tuxpeño, X ́nuuknal y Sinaloa) durante 24 y 48 h a 45 °C asumiendo 85 a 100% de humedad relativa con el objetivo de evaluar su efecto en germinación y desarrollo de plántulas de maíz, en invernadero la siembra fue en bandejas de plástico con estiércol de bovino como sustrato. Las variables evaluadas: peso inicial semillas, número medio de días a germinación total, porcentaje de germinación, altura de planta, peso fresco y seco total, área foliar total, peso fresco y seco de la raíz y vástago y la relación vástago: raíz. El diseño experimental fue bloques completos al azar con arreglo factorial 3 x 3 con (n= 5) y comparación de medias Tukey (p< 0.05). Los resultados mostraron diferencias significativas entre materiales de maíz en todas las variables mientras que el efecto de tiempos de envejecimiento acelerado y la interacción de ambos únicamente mostraron diferencias significativas en porcentaje de germinación. El maíz País Tuxpeño por su viabilidad y resistencia al deterioro resultó el más favorable para producir forraje verde.

The aim of this work was to assess the seed oils of different Borago species as sources of bioavailable γ-linolenic acid (GLA) by establishing its positional distribution within the triacylglycerol (TAG) structure. To this end, seeds of wild and farmed Borago species were collected and analysed. The highest GLA percentage of total fatty acids (FA) was found in B. morisiana and B. pygmaea (23.1 and 22.9% GLA of total FA, respectively). Other endemic Borago species (B. trabutii and B. longifolia) show a lower GLA content (18.9 and 19.0% of total FA, respectively). Oil content in seeds of B. officinalis ranged from 14.4 to 20.3%, while the GLA percentage of total FA was 15.7–19.4%, which leads to a 2.3–3.7% GLA range in the whole seeds. For endemic Borago, such amounts were 5.6, 5.0, 3.9, and 3.0%, for B. morisiana, B. pygmaea, B. trabutii, and B. longifolia, respectively. The distribution of FA in the sn-2 position of TAG was assessed by enzymatic hydrolysis reaction. The best regiospecific index was found in B. longifolia (0.8) and B. officinalis (1.0). This study provides useful data on novel GLA-rich Borago seed oils, which have potential use in the food and pharmaceutical industries.

Borage oil contains γ-linolenic acid (GLA, 18:3n-6), and significant amounts of tocopherols, sterols and squalene. However, data on phenolics are absent for most Borago species, while such compounds are relevant for improving human health. In this work, seeds of all endemic-wild Borago species and wild and farmed B. officinalis were surveyed for phenolic compound composition and in vitro antiproliferative activities. Phenolic analyses were conducted by HPLC-DAD and LC-MS, and antiproliferative activity were checked by the MTT assay. Besides a flavonol (kaemferol), 13 phenolic acids were identified and quantified. Among B. officinalis samples, the highest amounts of total phenolics and rosmarinic acid were found in the warmest and southernmost localities. Rosmarinic acid ranged from 12.21 (B. officinalis ‘Alba’ B2) to 105.06 mg/100 g seed (B. longifolia). Ferulic acid was also found in all Borago species, ranging from 1.38 in wild B. officinalis to 55.98 mg/100 g seed in B. longifolia. The MTT assay showed dose- and time-dependent inhibitory effects of Borago extracts on HT-29 cancer cells, with GI50 values within the 250–300 μg/mL range after 72 h of cell exposure to seeds extracts. Due to the occurrence of some compounds lacking antiproliferative activity in the crude phenolic extract, as evidenced by 1H NMR spectrum, the antiproliferative activity of the phenolics-containing extracts was lower than that obtained due to pure phenolics. This work constitutes the first approach to evaluate the phenolic composition of all Borago species and provides arguments for using endemic-wild Borago taxa by the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries.

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T17:15:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2017-11-08 An experiment was conducted to develop a model of vegetative growth based on the nitrate concentrations in nutrient solutions using the nutrient film technique and to determine the best cultivar for each concentration. The chicory cultivars (“Pão de Açúcar,” “Folha Larga,” “Precoce de Trieste” and “Catalonha”) and the subplots corresponded to different nitrate concentrations (6.68, 10.0, 13.32 and 16.64 mmol L−1). There was an interaction between the evaluated factors, such that there was no similarity in the response of the chicory cultivars to the N concentrations in the nutrient solution. The most productive chicory cultivar was “Pão de Açúcar,” which exhibited 10.5% higher productivity than the average, and the least productive was “Folha Larga,” which showed approximately 8.5% lower productivity than the average. Departamento de Produção Vegetal Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias Campus de Jaboticabal UNESP–Universidade Estadual Paulista Departamento de Agronomía Universidad de Almería Departamento de Produção Vegetal Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias Campus de Jaboticabal UNESP–Universidade Estadual Paulista

An intercrop is studied here as a new way of farming in soilless systems within a protected environment. To estimate the efficiency of intercropping in this cultivation system, an experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of the electrical conductivity (EC) of the nutrient solution (2.0, 2.5, and 3.0 dS·m−1) on lettuce and tomato plants and on the agronomic and economic feasibility of the intercrop compared with monoculture. The results indicated that a moderate increase in EC from 2.0 to 3.0 dS·m−1 did not exert any important effect on tomato plant production or quality but did cause a decrease in lettuce yield in both the first and second crops. Intercropping was only feasible for lettuce when the tomato and lettuce plants were transplanted on the same day. The highest tomato (G class) and lettuce yields were achieved at an EC of 2.5 dS·m−1; this condition resulted in the highest intercrop profitability (0.53 €·m−2 more) when compared with tomato monoculture.

Thermography is a tool used in many scientific disciplines, including agriculture. Determining the behavior of a nutritive solution in soilless culture containers using substrates is very important in order to establish the position of drippers, drainage holes, the use of humidification agents, and fertigation management in culture units. This paper describes the application of thermography to determine the humidification bulb in horticulture crops to rapidly diagnose the best way to advance fertigation in different horticultural substrates in soilless culture. Thermography was seen to be an excellent tool for evaluating the movement and distribution of the nutritive solution within the soilless culture container with different substrates.

Greenhouse tomato production is shifting to meet emerging consumer needs. Increasing environmental concerns have pressured growers to supply high-quality vegetables using sustainable production methods. The utilization of adapting fertigation to production conditions and/or nutrient solutions of moderately high conductivity seems promising in providing high yields of superior quality while limiting the emission of nutrients to the environment in greenhouse tomato crops. A tomato crop was grown in soilless culture with various levels of electrical conductivity (EC), 2.2, 3.5, and 4.5 dS·m−1, adjusting the final nutrient concentration and maintaining nutritional balance. The effect of nutrient solutions with moderately high EC on fertigation parameters and the emission of nutrients to the environment, total crop productivity, distribution of fruit sizes, and dietary and organoleptic qualities were measured. Nutrient solutions of moderately high EC decreased total and commercial yield, with an average reduction from 5% to 19% and 3% to 22%, respectively. A considerable decrease in extra large and large fruits, with an average reduction from 69% to 42%, was also observed. Nonetheless, dietary-related metabolites were significantly increased at the highest EC values: lycopene (6.3%), ascorbic acid (8.8%), total phenolics content (8.3%), and total antioxidant activity (11.1%). EC values of 3.5 and 4.5 dS·m−1 are not widely used in commercial production but are frequently measured in drainage solutions in open hydroponic systems and discarded solutions in closed systems, mainly because of the use of poor-quality water and the accumulation of excess nutrients.

The aim of this work was to establish the richness in γ-linolenic acid (GLA, 18:3n6) and stearidonic acid (SDA, 18:4n3) of several Sardinian Boraginaceae species. To this end, seeds of selected species were collected from their natural habitats and analysed. The highest GLA contents were found in the seed oils of two endemic Borago taxa, i.e. B. morisiana (24.4 and 24.6% GLA of total fatty acids for samples from San Pietro Island and Sardinia Island, respectively), and 22.9% GLA for B. pygmaea. Both Borago species contained more GLA than B. officinalis collected in the same ecosystems. SDA was found in significant amounts in Echium plantagineum seed oil from the Lattias Mountains (15% SDA of total fatty acids). It is notable that both Borago GLA-rich species are under threat of extinction, thus revealing the importance of the preservation of the natural Sardinian ecosystems for endangered species and human health.

The benefits of silicon for different plant species have been described in many studies in both soilless and traditional soil culture systems. The aim of this work was to quantify the effect of Si on leaf cuticles under different fertigation regimes and the relationship of this effect to water, potassium and nitrate absorption, vegetative growth and plant protection. Cucumber, melon and pepper plants were transplanted into coconut fiber containers with Si in the nutrient solution at 0.6 mM (+Si) and without Si (-Si) under optimal fertigation (OF) and moderate deficit fertigation (DF) conditions. Absorption of water, nitrate and potassium, vegetative growth, leaf firmness, loss of water through cuticle transpiration, cuticle thickness, number of trichomes and Si content in the epidermis and trichomes were measured. Trichome numbers, cuticle thickness and Si content were examined using light and SEM microscopes equipped for X-ray microanalysis. Resistance to two pathogens, Botrytis cinerea and Erysiphe cichoracearum, was also measured. The results show a loss of growth in the three cv. under DF that was alleviated when Si was supplied in the nutrient solution. +Si significantly improved water absorption and decreased leaf loss, which may explain the improvement shown in the growth parameters. +Si showed clear and significant growth increases in both the epidermis and the cuticle, which could justify both the observed greater resistance to diseases and the lower rates of water loss from the leaves. The three cv. showed high concentrations of Si in the trichomes, even under -Si treatments with a mean Si concentration lower than that in the +Si treatments.

During the last decade, vertical greenery systems are increasing their presence in building designs, providing several urban ecosystem services. One of them is the potential to provide energy savings in buildings, which develops an important role, however, data about its performance during winter periods is still scarce. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to compare at real scale the thermal performance of two different vertical greenery systems implemented in experimental houses-like cubicles for both cooling and heating periods. A double-skin green facade has been installed in the first cubicle that uses deciduous creeper plants, while the second one is designed with green walls made with evergreen species. Finally, a third identical cubicle without any green coverage is used as reference. Two different types of experiments have been carried out to test the performance of the house like-cubicles. One consists of controlling the internal ambient temperature providing heating or cooling to maintain the desired comfort conditions. On the other hand, to study the thermal response of the construction system, the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system was disconnected and the cubicles were tested under free floating condition. First results showed a high potential for energy savings during cooling season for green wall (58.9%) and double-skin green facade (33.8%) in comparison to the reference system. On the other hand, for heating periods no extra energy consumption was observed for evergreen system. The work partially funded by the Spanish government (ENE2015-64117-C5-1-R (MINECO/FEDER), ENE2015-64117-C5-3-R (MINECO/FEDER) and ULLE10-4E-1305) in collaboration with the company Buresinnova S.A (C/Saragossa, 95 Entsol 3a, 08006 BARCELONA). The authors would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to their research group (2014 SGR 123) and to the city hall of Puigverd de Lleida. This study has received funding from the European Commission Seventh Framework Programme (FP/2007–2013) under Grant agreement Nº PIRSES-GA-2013-610692 (INNOSTORAGE) and from European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement Nº 657466 (INPATH-TES). Alvaro de Gracia would like to thank Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad de España for Grant Juan de la Cierva, FJCI-2014-19940. Julià Coma would like to thank the Departament d'Universitats, Recerca i Societat de la Informació de la Generalitat de Catalunya for his research fellowship.

In a soilless culture, water and nutrients must be frequently and precisely applied due to the reduced volume and low water holding capacity of the substrate. We describe a low-cost and efficient control system for the irrigation management of soilless culture based on an irrigation tray. Both irrigation and drainage volumes from the irrigation control tray are measured automatically. The proposed irrigation scheduling options were based on applying both variable timing and amounts. A Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) algorithm was used to establish the irrigation timing option while two different irrigation application options, based on measurements from the drainage hydrograph, were developed and tested. A field test performed on a tomato crop was carried out to assess the performance of the two irrigation application options. Both irrigation algorithms performed well as they fitted the leaching fraction for every irrigation event to the target value. The fruit yield and quality were comparable to results obtained from the control treatment of the tomato crop. The designed low-cost irrigation control system, if implemented on commercial farms, could prove to be economically very beneficial. Keywords: Automation, Drainage hydrograph, Irrigation control tray, Irrigation scheduling, Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller, Substrate culture.

Vertical Greenery Systems (VGS) are promising contemporary Green Infrastructure which contribute to the provision of several ecosystem services both at building and urban scales. Among others, the building acoustic insulation and the urban noise reduction could be considered. Traditionally vegetation has been used to acoustically insulate urban areas, especially from the traffic noise. Now, with the introduction of vegetation in buildings, through the VGS, it is necessary to provide experimental data on its operation as acoustic insulation tool in the built environment. In this study the acoustic insulation capacity of two VGS was conducted through in situ measurements according to the UNE-EN ISO 140-5 standard. From the results, it was observed that a thin layer of vegetation (20–30 cm) was able to provide an increase in the sound insulation of 1 dB for traffic noise (in both cases, Green Wall and Green Facade), and an insulation increase between 2 dB (Green Wall) and 3 dB (Green Facade) for a pink noise. In addition to the vegetation contribution to sound insulation, the influence of other factors such as the mass factor (thickness, density and composition of the substrate layer) and type of modular unit of cultivation, the impenetrability (sealing joints between modules) and structural insulation (support structure) must be taken into account for further studies. The work was partially funded by the Spanish government (ENE2011-28269-C03-02, and ULLE10-4E-1305), in collaboration with the company Buresinnova S.A (C/ Saragossa, 95 Entsol 3ª, 08006 BARCELONA). Moreover, the research leading to these results has received funding from the Eurpean Commission Seventh Framework Programm (FP/2007–2013) under Grant agreement No. PIRSES-GA-2013-610692 (INNOSTORAGE) and from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 657466 (INPATH-TES). The authors would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to their research group (2014 SGR 123), to the City Hall of Puigverd de Lleida, and to Gestión Medioambiental de Neumáticos S.L. and Flag Soprema S.L.U. companies. Alvaro de Gracia would like to thank Education Ministry of Chile for Grant PMI ANT1201. Finally, Julià Coma wants to thank the Departament d’Universitats, Recerca i Societat de la Informació de la Generalitat de Catalunya for his research fellowship.

Modern agriculture has a growing level of technification, through the incorporation of new technologies of great utility in other disciplines different from the agricultural sector. The use of remote sensing systems to monitor the physiological state of crops by observing the volume and appearance of the roots is another example of its application. These systems are based on the detection and recording of spectral variations of crops both in the range of visible radiation and within the electromagnetic spectrum in the infrared range. Thermography is a visual tool that has found applications in agriculture. The monitoring of water status through the observation of crop roots is essential to optimize the use of water in agriculture, as well as its development and final production. The efficiency of root growth in basil crops has been analysed in a chamber with controlled humidity and temperature. The aim of this work was to demonstrate a better efficiency of root analysis with a first non-invasive and environmentally friendly method, visually, using thermal imaging and digital processing in the evaluation of radical growth versus two other conventional methods: traditional standard analysis and invasive analysis with digital image treatment. The results also showed advantages in the use of thermographic images compared to the use of RGB images for roots smaller than 1 mm.

Borage is a well-known plant of great importance in human nutrition and health. Expanding knowledge of particular plants that have anti-cancer products is a global concern. There is substantial information regarding the benefits, presence and extraction of gamma linolenic acid (GLA) in different plants around the world, especially in borage seeds. However, there is little information concerning the effects of the salinity of the nutrient solution on the growth and presence of GLA in borage seeds. The objective of this work was to determine the optimal salinity of the nutrient solution for obtaining GLA in soilless cultivation systems. Borage plants were grown in coconut fibre and provided three treatments of nutrient solution of 2.20, 3.35 and 4.50 dS m−1, increasing solution salinity with the standard nutrient solution of concentrated macronutrients as a reference. Vegetative growth, seed production and GLA ratio were measured. The results of vegetative development and GLA production doubled and tripled with the increase in salinity of the nutrient solution, respectively.