Sustainable use of bottle gourd residue combined with vermicompost and vermiculite in lettuce production
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5327/Z2176-94782819Keywords:
agricultural residue; environmental sustainability; Lactuca sativa L.; substrate; Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl.Abstract
The use of agro-industrial residues as agricultural inputs represents a sustainable alternative to reduce environmental impacts and promote circular economy. We evaluated the potential of bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl) residue at different proportions and particle sizes, combined with vermicompost and vermiculite, as a component of substrates for lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) cv. Veneranda seedling and plant production. Two greenhouse experiments were conducted to compare the substrates containing bottle gourd residue, vermiculite, vermicompost, and a commercial substrate. One experiment evaluated seedling production and the other evaluated lettuce production. In both experiments, treatment T7 (20% bottle gourd residue, 0.5 cm particle size + 80% vermicompost) resulted in superior plant growth and better root ball stability. From an environmental perspective, considering the bulk density of bottle gourd residue (0.24 g cm-3), incorporation reached 30–120 g per pot (2.5 L) and up to 48 kg m-3 of substrate, partially replacing conventional inputs with high energy demand such as vermiculite, perlite, and pine bark. These indicators highlight the potential of residue reuse to reduce waste, mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, and promote more resilient agricultural systems. Therefore, bottle gourd residue emerges as an environmentally sound and agronomically efficient alternative, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 12 and 13).
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Copyright (c) 2026 Siozimila Fernandes Onhinam, Alana Minuzzi Piazer, Nathalie Caroline Hirt Kessler, Pedro Henrique Santiago, Marcelo Antônio Rodrigues, Daniel Pazzini Eckhardt, Juliano Borela Magalhães, Zaida Inês Antoniolli
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