Amino Acids Substance Biostimulants Application for Vegetable Development of Cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis L.)

Abstract

In Brazil, cauliflower crop (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis) is mainly a backyard gardening production, conducted in small areas of the country. However, its farming practice requires manpower as the production is mostly driven by family farming. Indeed, demand in labor and in sums, further coupled with environmental concerns and high production costs, seeks otherwise alternatives in providing greater efficiency, generating greater yield and quality, compared to other vegetables. Thus, the present study aimed to evaluate the biostimulant effect based on amino acids associated with a nutrient complex with high calcium and boron content in cauliflower cultivation. The experiment was carried out in the municipality of Campo Largo-PR, Brazil in a completely randomized design, with four treatments and three replications. The treatments consisted of 0.50; 0.75 and 1.0ml L-1 doses, plus the control treatment (producer standard), which follows all recommendations for culture, without the addition of the product under study in this article. The applications were performed by foliar spraying, at fortnightly intervals. At the end of the cycle, at 96 days after transplantation, the following parameters were evaluated: plant height, head height, head width and length, number of leaves, stem diameter, the fresh mass of the head, and average yield. The use of the biostimulant based on amino acids, calcium, and boron had a positive effect on the cauliflower crop, with the best results obtained at the dose of 1 ml L-1.