Organic and mineral fertilization and its relationship with chemical composition of leafs on yellow passion fruit

Abstract

The experiment was accomplished in Campos dos Goytacazes, Rio de Janeiro, from February of 2005 through July of 2006. The aim of the study was to compare mineral and organic fertilizers applied to yellow passion fruit plants related to their effects over the mineral composition of leaf contents of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn, B and Mo. The experiment was a randomized complete block design with four replicates and six treatments. Treatments were : T₁ – 100g of the mineral formula N-P-K, 20-05-20 + mulching (CM); T₂ – 5L of cassava scrapings + CM; T₃ – 5L of cattle manure + CM; T₄ – 5L filter pie of sugar cane plant + CM; T₅ – 500g of bone and meat flour + CM; T₆ – 5L filter pie of sugar cane without CM. Climatic variations and the chemical composition of the composts were the main causes of oscillations in the leaf contents. . The treatment with flour of bones and meat was the only of the organic ones that did not differ from the chemical as for the concentration of N in the leaves, however it presented the lowest K concentration. All of the organic treatments did not differ from the mineral fertilizer in terms of leaf concentration of P, Ca, Cu, Fe, Mo and Zn.