Growth and absorption curve of nutrients in tomato crop ‘BRS imigrante’ cultivar grown in coconut fiber

Abstract

Tomato is one of the main vegetables produced in Brazil, it adapts to practically all climates, but is susceptible to several diseases that lead to reduced productivity and quality. One of the most important segments in the Brazilian market is the fresh tomatoes, the ‘BRS Imigrante’ hybrid, which tolerates some diseases that cause production losses, is included in this category. The aim of this study was to evaluate the growth and the absorption curve of macro and micronutrients by ‘BRS Imigrante’ tomato cultivated in coconut fiber. The experimental design was randomized blocks with 10 treatments, consisting of sampling phases 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110 days after transplantation (DAT). In all the sampling phases, the biometric parameters of the plants were evaluated: number of leaves, fresh and dry mass of stem and leaves, fresh shoot mass, stem diameter and length, and fruit size, as well as the quantification of macro and micronutrient contents of leaves, fruits and stalks were carried out. For the development of the most adequate models of the absorption curve, the sigmoidal model with 3 parameters was adopted. Regarding the biometry, the tomato showed a sigmoidal growth rate for the evaluated parts, showing that at each crop stage, it presents different requirements. The most absorbed nutrients were K, Ca and N, respectively for the macronutrients and Fe, Cu and Mn for the micronutrients.