A field experiment was conducted in Nova Porteirinha, MG, Brazil, in a dystrophic Red Yellow Latossol, to detect the response of the banana tree 'Prata Anã' to Zn doses through soil and critical Zn levels in soil and leaves. Four Zn doses were applied, corresponding to 0, 10, 20 and 40 kg ha-1 year-1 , using zinc sulfate as source. The treatments were arranged in a randomized block design, with three repetitions per block, totaling 36 experimental plots. The following traits were evaluated: fruit yield, soil Zn content (Mehlich-1 and DTPA pH 7.3) and leaf Zn, in two cropping years. The fruit yield increased with Zn doses in the soil, reaching an average yield of 22.2 t ha-1 with application of 4.1 kg Zn ha-1 year-1 in two crops. The mean critical level of soil Zn by the extractors Mehlich-1 and DTPA, was 14.5 and 5.2 mg dm-3, respectively and 15.8 mg kg-1 for leaf Zn, in the edaphoclimatic conditions of northern Minas Gerais.
Musa sp.; banana nutrition; Oxisol; leaf analysis; critical level
