ABSTRACT
An experiment was undertaken in Remígio County, Paraíba State, Brazil, from July 2013 to May 2014, in order to evaluate the effects of saline water irrigation, bovine biofertilizer, and potassium type on soil salinity, leaf macronutrient composition, and production of yellow passion fruit cv. BRS Gigante Amarelo. Treatments were distributed in randomized blocks, arranged in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design, with reference to electrical conductivity of the water (0.35 and 4.00 dS m-1), soil with and without bovine biofertilizer, and application of potassium chloride as a conventional treatment (KCl) and in an organic polymer-coated form, supplied monthly. Bovine biofertilizer was diluted in non-saline water (proportion, 50%) and applied via water at a volume of 6 L plant-1 one day before transplanting, and then every 90 days. The combination of saline water with bovine biofertilizer raised soil salinity to a similar proportion when comparing saline water and conventional potassium chloride with saline water and polymer-coated potassium chloride. The increase in water saline concentrations associated with both types of potassium chloride and with bovine biofertilizer elevated soil salinity from non-saline to saline. On starting to flower, plants of cv. BRS Gigante Amarelo were deficient in macronutrients other than nitrogen and potassium, but nonetheless produced fruits of an adequate mass for the consumer market.
Key words:
yellow passion fruit; bovine biofertilizer; salinity
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The same lowercase letters on columns denoting the same water treatment (saline or nonsaline), and the same uppercase letters on columns for different water treatments, indicate there was no statistical difference from each other according t o a Tukey test (p ≤ 0.05)
Columns labeled with the same lowercase letters indicate no difference in phosphorus content, and columns with the same uppercase letter also indicate no difference, in each case in the absence or presence of biofertilizer and under the same type of water treatment (saline or non-saline)
The same lower case letters for columns representing potassium leaf content denote there was no difference according to potassium type, under the same water treatment (saline or non-saline); the same upper case letters on columns denote no difference according to type of water for the same potassium type. This was in each case according to a Tukey test (p ≤ 0.01)
