There are many different types of systems used to grow food that are distinguished by ideology or the technology used. It is often difficult to directly compare yield and quality in different growth systems due to the complicated interactions between genotype, physiology and environment. Many published comparisons do not identify and acknowledge confounding factors. However, there is urgency to undertake controlled comparisons to identify the most efficient and effective food production systems, because the world faces considerable challenges to food supply with population rise, ongoing environmental degradation and the threat of climatic change. Here we compared soil with two hydroponic growth systems, drip irrigation and deep-water culture (DWC). It is often claimed that such systems differ in water use, yield and crop quality; however, such comparisons are often confounded by assessing plant and system parameters in different growth environments or where factors that are difficult to standardise between systems, such as nutrient status, are not controlled. We grew tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) in the three growth systems in two replicated experiments, in either a polytunnel or glasshouse. We controlled and monitored water use and nutrient levels across all systems as different fertilizer applications can influence the nutritional values of produce. Plants in the two hydroponic systems transpired less water and were more water-efficient with a lower product water use than plants grown in soil. Fruit yield was similar and total soluble solids and sugar levels were not significantly different between the three growing systems. However, levels of lycopene and β-carotene were either similar or significantly higher in DWC compared to growth systems using soil or drip irrigation. Our results identify hydroponic systems as more water use efficient with DWC also capable of producing higher quality produce.

有许多不同类型的用于种植食物的系统，它们通过意识形态或所用技术来区分。由于基因型，生理和环境之间复杂的相互作用，通常很难直接比较不同生长系统中的产量和质量。许多已发表的比较并没有发现并承认混淆因素。但是，迫切需要进行对照比较以确定最有效的粮食生产系统，因为随着人口的增加，持续的环境退化和气候变化的威胁，世界在粮食供应方面面临着巨大的挑战。在这里，我们将土壤与两种水培生长系统（滴灌和深水养殖）进行了比较。人们通常认为，这种系统在用水，产量和农作物质量方面存在差异；然而，通常，通过比较不同生长环境中或无法控制系统之间难以标准化的因素（例如营养状况）的植物和系统参数来混淆此类比较。我们种了番茄（番茄L.）在两个重复的实验中的三个生长系统中，无论是在多通道还是在温室中。由于不同肥料的使用会影响农产品的营养价值，因此我们控制和监控了所有系统的用水和养分水平。与在土壤中生长的植物相比，这两个水耕系统中的植物蒸发的水更少，并且节水效果更高，产品用水量也更低。三种生长系统之间的果实产量相似，且总可溶性固形物和糖水平无显着差异。然而，与使用土壤或滴灌的生长系统相比，DWC中番茄红素和β-胡萝卜素的水平相近或显着更高。我们的结果表明，DWC还可以生产更高品质的产品，因此水培系统可提高用水效率。