Abstract

Saffron is one of the most appreciated, traditional and expensive spices in the world. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of electric conductivities (ECs) of nutrient solution on the production and commercial qualities of saffron grown in soilless culture. Corms of saffron were placed in a controlled cultivation chamber in pot of 0.5 L refilled with standard coir as substrate. The treatments with standard macro- and micronutrient content were the EC supplied at 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 and 3.5 dS m−1. The parameter measured were vegetative growth, number of flowers per corms, the weight and length of stigmas, the absorption of water, nitrate and potassium from fertigation, metabolite content and commercial categories. The amounts of safranal, crocin and picrocrocin were analysed spectrophotometrically according to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO/TS 3632–1 (2003) Normative). The best results in fertigation uptake, vegetative growth and commercial production were obtained at ECs of 2.0 to 2.5 dS m−1, while the best metabolite concentrations and commercial category were recorded between ECs of 2.5 to 3.0 dS m−1. Saffron quality in soilless culture improved slightly in relation to traditional method of crop.