Role of nutrients by banana growth stages
Find out which nutrients are most important at different growth stages.
Establishment
- Nitrogen and Potassium – promote early growth of new plant tissue
- Phosphorus – maximize root development and provide a strong soil reserve for crop development
- Calcium – boost root and leaf growth and ensure high yields
- Magnesium – fuel energy transfer within the developing tissues
- Sulfur – maximize growth through protein formation
- Macronutrients – to ensure tissue growth is not limited
Vegetative growth
- Nitrogen and potassium – maintain plant growth in the built up to flowering (80% of all potassium should be applied before flowering)
- Calcium – maximize reserves in the build up to reproductive development to provide good fruit firmness, peel integrity and transport and storage quality with minimal disease
- Sulfur – maximize growth through protein formation
- Magnesium – boost chlorophyll activity and N-uptake
- Micronutrients – maximum requirements for growth peak at this time
Flowering
- Nitrogen and potassium - to maintain growth during this critical phase
- Phosphorus – for strong flower production
- Calcium – in reduced amounts to maximize supplies to the fruit as it starts to form
- Boron and Zinc – to ensure good flowering with minimal disorders
- Micronutrients – when tissue analysis confirms deficiencies
Fruit fill - harvest
- Nitrogen – in reduced amounts to maintain growth and fruit fill
- Potassium – for good sugar to starch conversion and to maximize pulp weight, fruit size, TSS levels and vitamin C content
- Calcium – for good skin finish and fruit quality
- Magnesium – for high yields and bunch weights
