Fertilización de liberación lenta e inoculante micorrízico en Agave rhodacantha Trel. bajo condiciones de campo

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate, under field conditions, the individual and combined effects of a slow-release fertilizer (SRF) and a commercial mycorrhizal inoculant on the growth, biomass, foliar concentrations of Ca²⁺, Na⁺, NO₃⁻, and K⁺, and total soluble solids (TSS) in the stem of Agave rhodacantha Trel. Methodological design: A randomized complete block design with four replicates of four plants each was used. The treatments were: T1) control; T2) Osmocote Plus®; T3) Glumix®; and T4) Osmocote Plus® + Glumix®. At 12 months, the following were evaluated: plant height (HP), stem diameter (TT), unfolded leaves (HD), root volume (RV), root density (RD), fresh and dry weights of stems, leaves and roots, TSS content, and foliar concentrations of the ions under study. Results: Compared to the control, T4 increased HD (34.2%), TT (12.8%), fresh leaf weight (FH), stem fresh weight (FT), and leaf dry weight (SH) (40.3%); T2 increased HD (31.6%). Additionally, there were no significant differences regarding the other variables, TSS, or foliar ion concentrations. Research limitations: The study used juvenile plants at a single location. Mycorrhizal colonization was not quantified; therefore, we could not verify the presence of the inoculant fungi in the roots. Findings: The combined treatment promoted certain growth and biomass variables in A. rhodacantha without altering TSS or foliar ion levels. However, T4 did not differ significantly from T2 in the variables that increased; therefore, an additional contribution of Glumix® could not be established.