Vol. 111 (1998): Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural Society
Citrus

AN EVALUATION OF NUTRIENT REMOVAL BY CITRUS FRUITS

Published 1998-12-01

Keywords

  • citrus nitrogen budget,
  • critical concentration,
  • dry matter percent in fruits,
  • hamlin,
  • nitrogen removal in fruits,
  • nitrogen uptake efficiency,
  • parson brown,
  • sunburst,
  • valencia
  • ...More
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Abstract

In this experiment, Valencia, Parson Brown, Hamlin, and Sunburst cultivars were used which received either 150, 200, or 250 lb N ac[sup-] yr[sup-] as broadcast application of dry soluble granular fertilizer. Over three year period the effect of N rate was nonsignificant on either fruit diameter, dry weight, or fruit N content. The mean fruit diameter and the fruit weight varied from 2.7 to 3.3 inch and 141 to 262 g per fruit, respectively. The Valencia fruits were the largest, while the Sunburst were the smallest among the four varieties. The concentrations of most macronutrients (on dry weight basis) varied marginally among the four varieties. The quantities of nutrients in harvested fruits are those removed from the tree-soil system on an annual basis. The quantity of N in 500 boxes of fruits accounted 67 lb for the Valencia and Sunburst, and were 56 and 53 lb for the Parson Brown and Hamlin varieties, respectively. Most of the micronutrients in 500 boxes of fruits were 0.01 lb across all varieties. The interpretations of the nutrients removal in harvested fruits in relation to nutrient budget were discussed.