Fertilizer Concentration after Flowering Affects Growth and Fruit Setting of Ornamental Pepper

To evaluate the effect of the fertilizer concentration after flowering on growth a31d fruit setting of ornamental pepper (Capsicum annuum L.), plants were fertilized with $100\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N ($EC=0.8\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1}) until flowering, and then with 0 (no fertilizer), 100, 200 or $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N (fertilizer solution EC of 0.15, 0.8, 1.45 or $2.10\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1}, respectively) until harvest. Maximum leaf area and shoot dry mass at the end of the growing period were obtained when plants were fertilized with $200\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N. Total fruit number per plant at the end of the growing period was not different when plants were fertilized with 100,200 or 300 mg{\cdot}L^{-1}of N concentration. When plants were fertilized with $200\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N, the number of fruits per plant was decreased significantly as compared to 100, 200 or $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N, whereas the percentage of red fruits at the end of the growing period was maximized. Total fruit fresh weight per plant at the end of the growing period was highest with the concentration of $200\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N. The EC of the growing medium remained within 0.8 to $1.2\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1}\;2.0\;to\;3.0dS{\cdot}m^{-1}, or 3.0 to 4.5 dS{\cdot}m^{-1}when fertilizer concentrations were 100, 200 or $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N, respectively. Throughout most of the experiment, the pH of the growing medium remained within 5.4 to 6.2, but dropped to 4.9 near the end of the experiment when fertilizer concentration was 200 or 300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N. Content of most of the nutrients In the leaf was not affected by the different fertilizer concentration. Only aluminum was significantly affected and decreased linearly with increasing fertilizer concentration. The results from this study indicated that optimal fertilizer concentration after flowering for commercial production of ornamental pepper was 100 or $200\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1} of N. At these concentrations, the EC of the growing medium remained approximately within 0.8 to 1.2 and 2 to $3\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1}, respectively. This appears to be the optimal range for vegetative growth or fruit setting of ornamental pepper plants, and indicates that ornamental pepper can be grown with a fairly wide range of fertilizer concentrations.

개화 후 비료의 농도가 Ornamental Pepper의 생장과 착과에 미치는 영향

Ornamental pepper의 생장과 착과에 미치는 개화 후 비료 농도의 영향을 구명하기 위하여 정식 후부터 개화시까지 $100\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}\;(EC=0.8\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1})$의 N농도로 재배하였고 그 후부터 0, 100, 200, $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$의 N 농도(EC=0.15, 0.8, 1.45, $2.1\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$)로 처리하여 수확시까지 재배하였다. $200 \;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$의 N 농도 처리에서 최대 엽면적과 건물을 수확했으며 식물체당 전체 과일 무게도 가장 무거웠다. 100, 200, $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$의 N농도에서는 식물체당 과일 수에서 차이가 없었으며, $0\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$의 N농도에서 과일수가 현저히 감소하였으나 과일의 착색비율은 높았다. 100, 200, $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$의 N 농도로 화분에 관비했을 때 화분내 배지의 EC는 각각 0.8에서 $1.2dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$, 2.0에서 $3.0dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$, 3.0에서 $4.5dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$ 수준을 나타냈다. 200과 $300\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$의 N농도 처리구에서 배지의 pH가 낮았는데 특히 생육후기에는 4.9정도까지 낮아졌다. 식물체내 무기성분 함량은 대부분 개화 후 비료의 농도에 의해 영향 받지 않았으나 오직 aluminum은 비료의 농도가 증가함에 따라 직선적으로 감소하였다. 이 실험에서 ornamental pepper의 상업적 생산을 위해서는 개화 후 질소의 농도를 100에서 $200\;mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ 농도로 하는 것이 좋으며, 이 때 배지의 EC는 0.8에서 $3\;dS{\cdot}m^{-1}$로 비교적 넓은 범위를 보였다.