Production of lettuce crop under foliar organo-mineral fertilization and environment

Abstract

The objective of the present work was to evaluate the effect of the organo-mineral foliar fertilization and the environment in the lettuce crop. The work was carried out in a soil classified as Quartzipsamments, with loam texture and low initial availability of nutrients. The experimental design used was randomized blocks with a factorial arrangement 2 x 2 x 5, corresponding to two cultivars of lettuce (Crisp Vanda and Crisp Lucy Brown), two environments (with and without shading mesh at 35%) and five concentrations of Ferti Garden liquid fertilizer multipurpose via foliar, (0; 5; 10; 15 and 20% of the product in the solution), with 4 repetitions, containing 20 plants. Soil preparation was done manually and fertilized with 30 m³ hectare^-1 of bovine manure, dead cover was also used. The foliar fertilizer was applied three times, at intervals of seven days, through a constant pressure sprayer, from 12 days after transplanting the seedlings. At 33 days after the transplant the plants were harvested and evaluated in the variables of head diameter, number of leaves, fresh matter and productivity. The cultivar Crisp Lucy Brown proved to be more demanding in terms of luminosity and mineral nutrition in relation to the cultivar Crisp Vanda. Therefore, the highest development and productivity of the Crisp Lucy Brown cultivar is obtained without shading mesh, with fertilization before sowing of 30 kg ha^-1 of fowl bed and fertilization with 9.1% of the foliar fertilizer. While for the cultivar Crisp Vanda the highest productivity is obtained with shading mesh, and only with fertilization before sowing.