Growth of chamaecyparis lawsoniana nursery trees with different levels of covering and substrate mineral fertilization

Abstract

Two simultaneous experiments were accomplished in the Nursery of Ornamental Plants of the Federal University of Paraná State with the objective of evaluating the effect of mineral fertilization on the growth of nursery trees of Chamaecyparis lawsoniana planted directly in the field and in individual packings. The experimental design was the completely randomized with five combinations of NPK 4-30-10 + urea, in grams (0 + 0; 30 + 10; 60 + 20; 90 + 30 and 120 + 40 for the field and 0 + 0; 10 + 4; 20 + 8; 30 + 12 and 40 + 16 for the packings) and four replications. The growth of the plants was observed during one year and the height of plants and the diameter of the trunks were evaluated each two months. The fertilization in covering in the field did not stimulate the growth of the plants. The substrate fertilization promoted significantly higher growth of plants in height and diameter of trunks in the period from September to May. The trunk diameter was more influenced, demonstrating that the secondary growth of the plant is more stimulated by the fertilization. The plant growth in the field was greater than the plant growth in individual packings.