Dry matter accumulation and nutrients distribution in two banana cultivars irrigated with slightly saline water

Abstract

Dry matter accumulation and nutrients distribution are influenced by the competitive interactions existing in the environment and crop. This study was carried out with the objective to evaluate the influence of irrigation with slightly saline water on dry matter accumulation and nutrients distribution in two banana cultivars, Grand Naine and Prata Anã, on the production stage. The experiment was conducted between June 2004 and May 2005 in an Udorthent in Quixeré, Ceará, Brazil, where the cultivars were planted and irrigated with water with 1.66 dS m^-1 electrical conductivity. From the 210th day after the planting, in 45 days intervals, the plants of four randomly chosen clumps were sampled and separated into different parts for analysis. It was observed that 63% of the total N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Na and Cl were accumulated on the shoot components of the banana tree, and 37% on the bunch, showing the importance of nutrients replacements for the management of the banana crop, and that, as time went by, the accumulation of dry matter, K, Ca and Cl reduced on the shoot and increased on the bunch in both the cultivars.