COMPARATIVE STUDY OF WATER SPINACH GROWTH UNDER HYDROPONIC AND SOIL-BASED CULTIVATION
Abstract
Water spinach is a highly popular vegetable in Malaysia and is widely used in culinary applications. Demand for this vegetable continues to rise. Home cultivation is also gaining public interest, allowing owners to harvest their own produce. Various cultivation methods are available today, including hydroponics and soil-based planting. This study compares these two methods to determine which yields faster results. Plant height serves as the key indicator to assess which method is easier and more efficient. However, success ultimately depends on the nutrients provided and the suitability of the soil conditions. The study was conducted over a four- week period. For the soil-based method, a mixture of organic soil and biochar soil was used, with seeds planted in five polybags. Water spinach was irrigated daily and supplemented with NPK fertilizer weekly and effective microorganism (EM) solution every two weeks. For the hydroponic method, a passive system consisting of plastic bottles, net pots, and rockwool cubes was used, with five net pots, each containing one seed planted in a rockwool cube. A nutrient solution containing NPK fertilizer and EM was manually stirred daily. The height of water spinach was recorded weekly, and final growth parameters were measured after four weeks. The results showed that hydroponic cultivate of water spinach show greater high of water spinach than soil grown. The average height of hydroponic grown of height water spinach increased from 5.70 cm in Week 1 to 16.05 cm in Week 4, representing an increase of 10.35 cm. The height of water spinach using soil based increased from 3.33 cm to 7.65 cm, representing an increase of 4.32 cm. By Week 4, the height of water spinach using hydroponic were 8.40 cm taller than the soil-grown cultivation. The hydroponic grown water spinach faster, with greater plant height than soil-grown plants. Soil-grown plants demonstrated steady growth, although one sample showed a slight decrease in plant height, possibly due to differences in nutrient availability and environmental conditions. Overall, the hydroponic method demonstrated greater efficiency in water spinach growth production.