Content and Accumulation of Macronutrients in Radish Seeds in Response to Sulfur and Organic Compost

Ariel Santivañez Aguilar,Estefânia Martins Bardiviesso,Sara Raissa Brito Bezerra,Ernane Miranda Lemes,Henrique Vasque,Ricardo Adriano Felito,Andres Felipe Gaona Acevedo,Raíra Andrade Pelvine,José Murillo De Oliveira Leis,Antonio Ismael Inácio Cardoso

doi:10.5296/jas.v9i3.18064

Abstract

Sulfur (S) is usually the second most accumulated nutrient in seeds of Cruciferae plant species such as the radish. Tropical soils have low S availability creating a challenge to manage plant nutrition and balanced plant development to produce high-quality seeds. This study evaluated the influence of S doses and organic compost fertilization on the content and accumulation of macronutrients in radish seeds. Eight treatments were studied in subdivided plots, where the presence (50 t ha-1) or absence of organic compost was placed in the main plot, and the S doses (0, 60, 120, 180 kg ha-1 of S) were placed in the subplots. A randomized block design with six replications was used. Seed dry weight, N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and S concentration (g kg-1 of dry matter), and the accumulation of nutrients in seeds (g plant-1) were evaluated. There was no significant effect of S doses, or organic compost, on the contents of macronutrients in radish seeds. When organic compost was not applied, great doses of S generated great dry weight and accumulation of macronutrients in the radish seeds. However, the application of organic compost increased the dry weight and the accumulation of all macronutrients in radish seeds in low S doses (up to 66 kg ha-1). Also, the presence of organic compost increased the dry weight and the concentration of macronutrients in radish seeds. The decreasing order of macronutrient content and accumulation by the radish seeds was: N > S > K > P > Ca > Mg.

Highlights

Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus) is a plant species propagated by seeds with direct sown, not tolerating seedling transplants
Eight treatments were studied in subdivided plots, where the presence (50 t ha-1) or absence of organic compost was placed in the main plot, and the S doses (0, 60, 120, 180 kg ha-1 of S) were placed in the subplots
When no organic compost was added, a linear increase of the dry seed weight per plant was observed with a rise in the S dose (Figure 1)

Summary

Introduction

Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus) is a plant species propagated by seeds with direct sown, not tolerating seedling transplants. Sativus) is a plant species propagated by seeds with direct sown, not tolerating seedling transplants. The seed cost is very high because 10 to 20 kg ha-1 of seeds are necessary for commercial fields. The use of seeds of high physiological quality, germination, and vigor is fundamental to dilute costs and obtain a uniform plant population. The efficient management of crop fertilization improves the production of larger quantities of high-quality seeds. In Brassicaceae plant species, sulfur (S) supply is required between 70 and 80 kg ha-1, a dose much higher than the recommendation for most crops, between 15 and 50 kg ha-1 (Alvarez-Venegas et al, 2007). Sandy soils with low organic matter content raise the necessary S doses (Tiecher et al, 2013). In the last decades, the appearance of S deficiency symptoms has been increasing in the crops by the increase of concentrated fertilizers without S (Melo et al, 2011; Sun et al, 2017)

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