Biofertilizers in the coffee crop: application in the leaves and drip in the soil

Abstract

Coffee is a commodity important in economic and social terms. In order to obtain high yields and excellent quality products, more studies involving nutrient use efficiency and fertilizer sources need to be developed which offer new management options to producers, potentially providing more sustainable and better agricultural inputs and resources utilization. The aim of the study was to evaluate the application of biofertilizers (OM) in only leaf application and leaf and drip application, in growth, production and fruit quality of coffee cultivated under Savannah conditions (Araguari-MG), compared with conventional chemical coverage fertilization. The experiment was conducted with a randomized block design with three treatments and seven replications. The OM were used in leaf and leaf + drip applications, while the control treatment did not receive any OM application. The OM in leaf and in leaf + drip applications promote higher coffee tree height growth. The OM showed better results than control in 80.3 and 28.4%, in leaf application and leaf + drip application, respectively. However, further investigations need to be developed in order to find out the interference of organic constituents in plant physiology and nutrients dynamics.