RESPONSE OF DIFFERENT LEVELS OF NPK ON STRAWBERRY PRODUCTION

The production area of strawberry in Brazil is concentrated in the regions that present a subtropical and temperate climate, whose edafoclimatics variations influence soil fertility and the productive and vegetative behavior of the cultivars. The present work was carried out in Embrapa (Brazilian Enterprise of Agriculture Research) in the Center Climate Temperate located in Pelotas city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. The objective was to evaluate the production of two strawberry cultivars, using plants from two distinct regions (Chile and Brazil) and submitted to different levels of mineral fertilization (NPK). The cultivars assessed were ‘Camarosa’ and ‘Aromas’. After soil analysis the following fertilization recommendations was determined: the recommended dose (standard), 1,5 x recommended dose, 2,0 x recommended dose and 2,5 x recommended dose. The experiment was in a randomized complete block with four replications. The characteristics evaluated were average fruit weight, yield and the chemical analyses of macronutrients contents of the leaves. Regarding the macronutrients concentration on leaves, it was verified by variation analysis that there was no significative difference among the fertilization levels. The difference occurred between cultivar origins (Chile and Brazil). The average fruit weight as well as yield per plant of ‘Camarosa’ and ‘Aromas’, independent of plants origin, were significatively better when using twice the recommended dose.