Geranium (Pelargonium ×hortorum) is considered to be one of the top-selling floriculture plants, and is highly responsive to increased macro- and micronutrient bioavailability. In spite of its economic importance, there are few nutrient disorder symptoms reported for this species. The lack of nutritional information contributes to suboptimal geranium production quality. Understanding the bioenergetic construction costs during nutrient deficiency can provide insight into the significance of that element predisposing plants to other stress. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the impact of nutrient deficiency on plant growth. Pelargonium plants were grown hydroponically in a glass greenhouse. The treatment consisted of a complete modified Hoagland's millimolar concentrations of macronutrients (15 NO3-N, 1.0 PO4-P, 6.0 K, 5.0 Ca, 2.0 Mg, and 2.0 SO4-S) and micromolar concentrations of micronutrients (72 Fe, 9.0 Mn, 1.5 Cu, 1.5 Zn, 45.0 B, and 0.1 Mo) and 10 additional solutions each devoid of one essential nutrient (N, P, Ca, Mg, S, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, or B). The plants were photographed and divided into young, maturing, and old leaves, the respective petioles, young and old stems, flowers, buds, and roots at “hidden hunger,” incipient, mid- and advanced-stages of nutrient stress. Unique visual deficiency symptoms of interveinal red pigmentation were noted on the matured leaves of P- and Mg-deficient plants, while N-deficient plants developed chlorotic leaf margins. Tissue N concentration greatly influenced bioenergetic construction costs, probably due to differences in protein content. This information will provide an additional tool in producing premium geraniums for the greenhouse industry.
A Study of Factors Influencing Plant Growth by WSN Approach and Plant Nutrient Deficiency Classification in Tomato Using SVM
