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Using beneficial fungi and bacteria to plant growth may reduce the leaf nitrate content and improve the quality of produced food. This study aimed to evaluate the isolated and combined effect of inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense and Trichoderma hazianum at two electrical conductivities on the nutrition and production of hydroponic arugula cultivation. The experiment was designed in randomized blocks, in a 4 x 2 factorial scheme, with five replications. The treatments consisted of inoculations (non-inoculated, A. brasilense, T. harzianum and co-inoculation) and two electrical conductivities (1.4 and 1.6 dS m-1). The isolated inoculation of T. harzianum and A. brasilense produced a higher root fresh mass, while the leaf chlorophyll index was higher with the inoculation of A. brasilense, concerning the other treatments. The inoculation of A. brasilense reduced the nitrate content in the arugula leaves. The inoculations and co-inoculation of A. brasilense and T. harzianum improved the yield components and plant nutrition, reduced the leaf nitrate content and promoted the biofortification of arugula leaves with Zn and Fe. In addition, the inoculation with T. harzianum increased the P and S leaf content.

The use of water with different salinity values in the production of vegetable seedlings is an issue of global concern; therefore, selecting tomato cultivars with tolerance to saline water is essential to improve the fruit quality and production. This study aimed to estimate the maximum electrical conductivity of irrigation water that does not harm the production of tomato seedlings and find cultivars with tolerance to the effects of salinity in this phase. In the first experiment, the treatments were arranged in a 3 × 8 factorial scheme (three tomato cultivars and eight values of electrical conductivity of irrigation water). The second experiment was arranged in a 10 × 3 factorial scheme (10 cultivars and three values of electrical conductivity of irrigation water). The 50% reduction in the root dry matter accumulation occurred with the electrical conductivity of irrigation water (ECw) of 2.31 dS m-1. The reduction of more than 50% of the Dickson quality index was observed with an ECw of 6.38 dS m-1. Irrigation with 3.0 dS m-1 impairs the complete emergence and growth of seedlings of all tomato cultivars. Coração de Boi, Dominador, Maestrina, Sheena, and Shanty were the tomato cultivars most tolerant to the irrigation water with 3.0 dS m-1 of ECw. The electrical conductivity of irrigation water higher than 2.31 dS m-1 impairs the root growth of tomato seedlings.

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