The growth of the garlic of Lumbu Hijau variety in three different microclimatic conditions

Abstract

More than 90% of the need for garlic consumption in Indonesia is supplied from imports. One of the efforts to minimize the dependence on the import of garlic is through microclimate manipulation sub-tropical conditions in the growth chamber. This study aims to examine the growth of the early vegetative phase and bulb of garlic in three different microclimatic conditions. The experimental design used was a Randomized Block Design with four replications. The treatments consisted of three microclimatic conditions, i.e. (1) Smart Growth Chamber (SGC) in a tray with solar spectrum of LED irradiation conditions with a constant intensity of 10.000 lux; light/dark period of 14/10 hours controlled temperature of 22-25°C and humidity of 60–70%; (2) open field in trays, and uncontrolled microclimate (control 1); and (3) open field in mulched plots; and uncontrolled microclimate (control 2). The parameters observed were the plant height, growth rate, chlorophyll content, bulb size and qualitative character. Data analysis used was the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) followed by LSD significant difference test using the PKBT-Stat 3.1 version. The results of the study showed the initial success in manipulating microclimatic conditions through planting in SGC. The plant height, growth rate, chlorophyll content and bulb size in SGC were higher than control 1 and control 2.