Abstract
ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the fertiliser sources and application methods of copper (Cu) in citrus trees during the first years of fruit production. Two experiments were set up in an orchard with 3-year-old sweet orange trees, which were applied with three sources of Cu (nitrate, sulfate or EDTA) either via fertigation (Experiment 1) or via foliar sprays (Experiment 2). Regardless of the fertiliser source, Cu application via fertigation was not efficacious to increase the micronutrient concentration in leaves and, consequently, did not affect fruit yield. Conversely, foliar application of Cu, either as nitrate or sulfate, increased this nutrient level in leaves but when applied as copper nitrate, visual phytotoxicity symptoms were verified in leaves due to salt accumulation in the plant canopy, which reduced the fruit yield. Considering the plant growth and intensified phytosanitary management of the orchard with the application of copperbased products after the third year of the experiment, the effects of Cu treatments on fruit yield are expected to be negligible as the trees age.
Highlights
This study aimed to evaluate the fertiliser sources and application methods of copper (Cu) in citrus trees during the first years of fruit production
Micronutrient application via fertigation can be split into several doses, which allows deficiencies or nutritional excesses in the orchards to be corrected during the plant growth (Zekri and Koo 1992)
This study aimed to evaluate the effects of application methods and Cu fertiliser sources on the nutritional status and fruit yield of young citrus trees
Summary
This study aimed to evaluate the fertiliser sources and application methods of copper (Cu) in citrus trees during the first years of fruit production. In Experiment 1, Cu concentration in the soil was higher when applied via fertigation as a nitrate source in the first and the third years at the 0 - 20 cm depth (Figure 1), as well as in the third year at 0 - 40 cm depth layer (5.7 mg.dm–3) compared to the other treatments (4.1 mg.dm–3; p < 0.05; data not shown).
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