Growth of Lactobacillus plantarum in Cucumber Extract Containing Various Chloride Salts

Systems similar to the environment of pure-culture inoculation and the natural process of cucumber fermentation were used to study the capabilities of some salt substitutes including potassium chloride, calcium chloride, and magnesium chloride to provide a selective environment for the growth of Lactobacillus plantarum, a desirable species in cucumber fermentation. The salt that gave the highest percentage of Lactobacillus in the total microbial population was considered to provide the most selective environment for the desirable organisms in cucumber fermentation. Salts that provided the most selective environment were NaCl and KCl in the filtered, raw cucumber extract and KCl in the heated and filtered extract. Calcium chloride was more selective than MgCl₂ in either medium.