Abstract

CASTILLEJOS-REYES, Carlos; BAUTISTA-CRUZ, Angélica; SANCHEZ-MENDOZA, Saúl  and  QUINONES-AGUILAR, Evangelina Esmeralda. Response of agave coyote (Agave spp.) to the application of slow-release fertilizers under field conditions. Revista bio ciencias [online]. 2023, vol.10, e1431.  Epub Feb 23, 2024. ISSN 2007-3380.  https://doi.org/10.15741/revbio.10.e1431.

The agave coyote (Agave spp.) is a wild species used for its great potential for mezcal production in Oaxaca, Mexico. The present study aimed to evaluate the growth, nutritional and total soluble solids (TSS, sugars) response of agave coyote to slow-release fertilizers (SRFs) application under field conditions. Three treatments: control (no fertilization), Osmocote plus® (15-09-12), and Multicote Agri® (18-06-12) were evaluated in a completely randomized block design. Each treatment included 20 plants and four replicates, with the number of plants per treatment in each replicate equal to 5. After 10 months, plant height (PH), number of unfolded leaves (UL), stem circumference, root volume, root density, fresh leaf weight (FLW), fresh stem weight (FSW), fresh roots weight (FRW), dry leaves weight (DLW), dry stem weight (DSW), dry root weight (DRW), TSS and leaf contents of Ca2+, Na+, NO3 - and K+ were measured. Compared to the control plants, Osmocote increased PH by 21.2 %, UL by 28.4 %, FLW by 77.0 %, FSW by 62.8 %, DLW by 177.0 %, DSW by 53.1 % and DRW by 39.1 %. Multicote increased PH by 15.3 % and leaf content of K+ by 25.6 %, NO3 - by 26.2 %, and Na+ by 29.8 %. Under field conditions, applying SRFs promoted growth and nutrition but not TSS.

Keywords : Wild agave; Plant growth; Multicote; Plant nutrition; Osmocote.

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