Potential nutrient-response curves and sufficiency ranges for 'Prata-Ana' banana cultivated under two environmental conditions

Proper plant nutrition is critical to increasing the yield of bananas. The objective was to establish the potential nutrient-response curves and sufficiency ranges using the boundary line approach (BLA) and the method proposed by Kenworthy (MK) to assess the nutritional status of 'Prata-Ana' bananas cultivated under two environmental conditions. The study was carried out using a database comprising leaf nutrient concentrations and banana yields grown at Missao Velha, Ceara, and Ponto Novo, Bahia, Brazil. The reference population consisted of high-yielding plants with yields greater than the mean yield plus 0.5 standard deviation. The database was divided into two datasets. One contained 253 leaf analysis results and a reference population with a mean yield greater than 39.81 t ha(-1) yr(-1) at Missao Velha. The other contained 147 samples and a reference population with a mean yield greater than 41.69 t ha(-1) yr(-1) at Ponto Novo. The sufficiency ranges obtained by the BLA for 'Prata-Ana' banana in Bahia and Ceara, respectively, are: a) for macronutrients (g kg(-1)): N (19.3-22.0) and (19.9-22.1); P (1.4-2.0) and (1.4-1.6); K (22.6-32.2) and (24.0-31.3); Ca (4.6-6.5) and (5.3-5.8); Mg (1.8-2.6) and (2.1-2.7); S (1.3-2.0) and (1.3-1.5); b) for micronutrients (mg kg(-1)): B (8.4-13.0) and (13.7-16.4); Cu (5.6-8.4) and (4.4-5.2); Fe (54.2-77.6) and (39.0-55.0); Mn (140.1-222.8) and (64.0-91.0); Zn (13.5-18.3) and (12.4-14.5). The sufficiency ranges obtained by the BLA are more assertive when assessing the nutritional status for 'Prata-Ana' banana.

Automated summary

This study aimed to establish the nutrient-response curves and sufficiency ranges for 'Prata-Ana' bananas cultivated under different environmental conditions using boundary line approach (BLA) and another method proposed by Kenworthy. The results indicated that the sufficiency ranges obtained by BLA are more precise when assessing the nutritional status of 'Prata-Ana' bananas.