LED Cultivated Eruca sativa Morphogenesis and Productivity in Different Soil Mixtures

In this study, the impact of various soil mixes on arugula (Eruca sativa Mill.) cultivated under artificial lighting conditions was assessed. We used mixtures based on universal soil for garden plants, sand, Zion universal ion-exchange nutrient substrate, and Kristalon fertilizer in various proportions. The plants were grown in closed LED phytoboxes under white light (WW) with intensity of 500 μmol m–2 s–1. The light/dark photoperiod was 16/8 h. The arugula plants grown in 100% soil were used as a control. The results obtained showed that the highest values of the fresh weight, total leaf area, leaves number, and productivity were achieved under the Soil + Kristalon (SOK) and Soil + Sand + Kristalon (SSK) treatments, showing a 4.1‑fold and 3.5-fold increase in leaves biomass, respectively. Under Soil + Zion (SOZ) and Soil + Sand + Zion (SSZ) treatments plants parameters were similar to SOK and SSK, but slightly lower. The comparison of these two fertilizers and addition of sand was conducted for the first time. The results obtained demonstrated that the use of Kristalon and Zion led to improved plants performance in comparison with other experiments and control. Findings from this study will be helpful in the optimization of the quality and timing of plant growth.