Morphological, Physiological and Productive Indicators of Lettuce under Non-thermal Plasma

Abstract

The Iettuce has a nutritional value highlighted by the rich content of nourishing substances, vitamins, but also mineral salts, having an energy of 16 cal. The use of plasma is a key technology for the applied domains of all scientific branches, including agriculture; the physical and chemical processes associated with the plasma environment are profitable and beneficial for the modern economy. Extending the operating scope of plasma to atmospheric pressure in the cold (non-thermal) area constitutes a beneficial change in the field of plasma technologies. The purpose of the research was to establish the influence of the application of non-thermal plasma treatments to a Iettuce, applied on root area, to Shangore cultivar. Variant (V3) with 14 mg/1NO3 achieved the best results regarding the number of leaves per plant (33.8) and the average mass of a Iettuce head, respectively 61.1 g/plant, harvested at 58 days. The data obtained on the production in V3 is positively correlated with the total content of chlorophyll pigments, being 7.2 CCI units per leaf.