Lettuce production under NFT and Floating using brackish groundwater and the reject from its desalination

Abstract

Plants of lettuce cv. Elba were grown under two hydroponic systems, Floating and NFT, aiming to evaluate three water resources: natural brackish water (2,47 dS m^-1) obtained from a deep well; fresh water (0,11 dS m^-1) produced by reverse osmosis desalination; and reject brine (5,15 dS m^-1), a wastewater from desalination process. These waters were combined in six treatments resulted from their alternated use to prepare nutrient solution (NS) and/or replace the evapotranspiration loss (ETc). The experiment was carried out under a greenhouse condition in the semiarid region of Pernambuco State, Brazil; 48 experimental units were used for both hydroponic systems. The lettuce yield (shoot fresh matter) was higher under Floating conditions. The single use of deep well water and reject brine decreased 22.7 and 39.6% the lettuce yield, respectively. For a better combination of fresh and brackish waters, the use of brackish water to replace ETc loss may increase the lettuce yield in comparison to use these waters to prepare the NS; this result was registered for deep well water and reject.