MICRONUTRIENT DEMAND IN ADULT MACAÚBA PLANTS

For nutrient recommendation, it is essential to understand the demand of plants throughout their vegetative and productive development phases. It is also relevant to evaluate the nutrients present in the soil, taking into account their respective mechanisms of use and the dynamics of their transport in the soil profile. However, fertilization recommendations for Macaúba are often carried out empirically without knowing the real nutritional demand of the plant. Thus, it is necessary to know the amount of nutrients removed by the fruit during the harvesting process, in addition to the amounts absorbed for the formation and maintenance of the different compartments of the plant. Thus, the objective of the trial was to determine the micronutrient demand for 14.7-year-old Macaúba plants. To this end, a plant was thinned in the experimental area of DAA-UFV, municipality of Araponga-MG. And the plant was divided into different compartments (crown, stem, bunches, fruits and roots) to measure fresh matter. Then, the samples were placed in a forced air circulation oven at 65 ºC until they reached constant weight. Subsequently, they were weighed and ground to determine the dry matter masses. Thus, the total nutrient contents in the compartments and their respective contents were determined. Finally, the determination of the plant's micronutrient demand and descriptive analysis of the data were carried out. Thus, the micronutrients most demanded by the plant were B > Fe > Cu > Mn > Zn. The compartment that accumulated the most nutrients was the stem, except for Cu and the one that accumulated the least was the bunch, except for B