Yesterday I talked about nitrogen as a key element in crop and livestock production, today it is the turn of phosphorus, another essential macronutrient element for the plant.
▶ Phosphorus provides the energy necessary for functions of vital importance, for example, in cell division (ATP-DNA) and photosynthesis. It also influences fruit quality and firmness.
▶ Credits: farmandanimals – [Image of Public Domain]
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Phosphorus deficient plants have poor flowering and bud break easily. Fruits are larger, but with less juice and thicker rind, separating the segments from each other and from the central axis.
Unlike what happens with nitrogen, which is easily washed into the soil, phosphorus added with fertilizers accumulates in it and forms poorly soluble compounds, becoming a real reserve.
In acid soils, phosphates react with iron and aluminum ions, fixing them, making this element unavailable to plants; therefore, it is essential to correct the pH of soils to enable the absorption of this mineral element.
The application of corrective fertilizers should be done after detecting deficiency, preferably at the end of the winter season.
NOTE: Reference material.