Seedling Quality and Post-Transplant Growth Characteristics of Angelica gigas According to Plug Tray Cell Size

The cultivation of 'Angelica gigas' seedlings requires a prolonged nursery period, which has been recognized as a major technical constraint for growers.To overcome this limitation, plug seedling production has been explored; however, its application has remained largely at the experimental level due to various practical challenges.In addition, some growers have expressed concerns that plug seedling cultivation may reduce the content of decursin, a key bioactive compound in 'Angelica gigas', thereby potentially compromising product quality.This study aimed to provide fundamental information for improving seedling production systems by evaluating growth characteristics and major bioactive compound contents of 'Angelica gigas' seedlings produced in plug trays of different cell sizes after transplanting.Treatments included conventionally produced seedlings as the control, and seedlings raised in 50-cell vegetable plug trays and large forestry trays as experimental groups, all with a nursery period of 80 days.Seedling growth increased with tray cell volume, and this trend was maintained after transplanting.Seedlings produced in larger cells exhibited significantly greater fresh and dry weights, with those grown in large forestry trays showing approximately 1.8-fold higher dry weight at harvest compared with conventionally produced seedlings.In contrast, the contents of major bioactive compounds decursin, decursin angelate, and nodakenin were not significantly influenced by the seedling production method.Overall, these results indicate that plug seedling cultivation is an effective strategy for reducing nursery duration and improving land-use efficiency in 'Angelica gigas' production.Moreover, the use of large-cell trays appears to be particularly advantageous for enhancing seedling quality and promoting subsequent growth after transplanting, without negatively affecting the accumulation of key bioactive compounds.