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Dry matter and
nutrient content of taro (Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott var esculenta)
plants applied with
Walter
Faamatuainu
ABSTRACT
Two field
experiments were conducted to determine the dry matter and nutrient content of
taro plants to which controlled release (CR) and fast
release (FR) fertilizers were applied. A factorial experiment in randomized
complete block design (RCBD) with three replications was conducted at each
site. Four nitrogen treatments (calcium nitrate, urea, polymer coated urea and control),
three harvest dates (two, four and six months after planting (MAP)) and two sites
(Mt Hope and Orange Grove) were the experimental factors examined. Our results showed
that interactions between nitrogen sources, harvest dates and sites were statistically
significant (P<0.05) for the variables analysed.
Thus, FR
fertilizer partitioned more dry matter to the aboveground biomass while the
application of CR fertilizers leads to more dry matter allocation towards the corms.
Leaf blades (LDM) and petioles (PDM) received significant amount of dry matter
during the early growth stages while corms (CDM) received a greater portion of total
dry matter as taro plants approached maturity. FR fertilizers produced optimum (highest)
N in the LDM, PDM and CDM. Except for the CDM, FR fertilizers also produced
optimum K in the LDM and PDM. Furthermore, FR fertilizers produced optimum Mg
in the LDM and CDM during the early growth stages. Therefore, the application
of different nitrogen source fertilizers influenced the dry
matter.