Agronomic performance and food safety of strawberry cultivated on a remediated sediment

Amarine sediment phytoremediated and homogenized by landfarmingwas tested for its potential recycle as growingmedia in horticulture. Two strawberry cultivars, Camarosa andMonterey, were grown on remediated sediment alone (TS100), commercial peat/pumice based growingmedium(TS0) and a mixture 1:1 in volume of sediment and peat (TS50). Chemical fertility and strawberry production and safety of produced food were monitored for three consecutive productive seasons on the same growingmedia. During the first year of cultivation, plants grown on sediment-basedmedia showed a significantly lower biomass production and fruit yield comparedwith peat, mainly due to the sediment lowfertility. In the subsequent two years, the plant re-cultivation improved the sediment structure and N mineralization, and on the third cultivation year both strawberry cultivars showed higher fruit productivity and no accumulation of potentially toxic trace metals. The produced fruits did non accumulate high concentrations of trace metals, and risk assessment showed no risks for human health related to the consumption of strawberry produced on sediment-based growing media. We concluded that a phytoremediated sediment couldbe recycled as an ingredient of soilless growingmedia for reducing the environmental impact of plant nursery production and posing no risks for human health. These results show that reclaimed sediments could be reconsidered as a component material category in the new EU regulation on fertilizers.