Increased yield and nutrient content of Tropaeolum majus L. with use of chicken manure ¹

ABSTRACT

Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus L.) is an unconventional plant or vegetable grown for ornamental, food and medicinal purposes. However, information on cultivation of the species involving organic residue is incipient. Therefore, aimed to evaluate plant growth, flower yield, and nutrient contents of leaves and flowers of Nasturtium cultivated with addition of chicken manure. Five doses of chicken manure were studied, applied in the soil incorporated (I) (1, 6, 10, 14 and 19 t ha^-1) and cover (C) (1, 6, 10, 14 and 19 t ha^-1) forms, using the experimental array Plan Puebla III, leading to nine combinations of doses and forms of adding the chicken manure, in randomized blocks with four replicates. The greatest plant height (35.75 cm) was achieved at 168 days after transplanting (DAT) under 10 t ha^-1 I and 10 t ha^-1 C. The greatest yield terms of in number (15.4 million ha^-1) and fresh (10.45 t ha^-1) and dry weights (0.849 t ha^-1) of flowers were found by using doses close to 10 t ha^-1 I and 10 t ha^-1 C. To obtain the best development and yield of Nasturtium flowers, 10 t ha^-1 I and 10 t ha^-1 C of chicken manure should be used.

Keywords:
nasturtium; vegetable production; organic residue; organic cultivation