ABSTRACT Phosphorus is essential for plant metabolism. Although banana plants do not absorb large quantities, most of this mineral is exported together with the fruits, where the nutrients are related to sensory, nutritional, and technological qualities. Highly weathered soils, such as those found in most of Brazil, can immobilize phosphorus because of the cationic charges in iron and aluminum ions, making the element unavailable to plants and more challenging for phosphate fertilization. Brazil is the fourth-largest banana producer worldwide and […]

ABSTRACT: In banana cultivation, fertilization recommendations are almost exclusively based on soil chemical analysis, without considering leaf analysis and expected yield, which can help in the adjustment of fertilization programs. The aim of this study was to develop a method to recommend macronutrient fertilization rates which integrates data on leaf analysis, soil chemical analysis, and yield. Yield, soil chemical analysis, and leaf analysis data of fertigated plantations of ‘Prata’ banana were obtained for the first and second halves of the […]

The Amazon banana plant is of great socio-economical importance, despite its requirement for high agricultural input in order to obtain good yields. An association with arbuscular mycorrhizae fungi could minimize the crop’s nutritional needs in the poor soils of the Amazon. The present study aimed at verifying how the plant-fungus mycorrhizal symbiosis influences nutrient concentration in five varieties of adult banana plants cultivated in an acid Amazon Oxisol under field conditions. The banana plantation was defficient in macro (Ca, Mg […]