Browsing by Subject "Plant fiber"

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    Ecophysiological and agronomic response of Abaca (Musa textilis) to different resource conditions in Leyte Island, Philippines
    (2012) Bande, Marlito M.; Sauerborn, Joachim
    Abaca (Musa textilis Née) is closely related to edible bananas (Musa acuminata Colla and M. balbisiana Colla). Abaca usually thrives in the shade beneath tall trees, especially important for protecting the young plants from the sun and the older, taller plants from wind breakage. However, there is still disagreement on the need for shade trees in abaca cultivation. Hence, this study was conducted to ascertain the ecophysiological and agronomic response of abaca grown in different shade conditions, water and nutrient management systems in Leyte Island, Philippines. The objectives of the study were to: (a) explore the influence of shade and irrigation-fertilization on the morphological and physiological performance of abaca; (b) investigate the effect of reducing light intensities by 30%, 40% and 50% of full sunlight on fiber yield and fiber quality; (c) determine the optimum light requirement of abaca plants to attain the optimum yield without affecting the quality of the fiber for industrial use; (d) examine the effect of shade and irrigation-fertilization on biomass production and allocation as well as on NPK absorption and distribution among abaca organs; and (e) find out if irrigation and fertilization could offset the effect of shade on biomass production, NPK absorption and fiber yield of abaca. Field trials were established where light infiltration was reduced by 30%, 40%, and 50% of full sunlight using polypropylene shade nets. Irrigation was applied at a rate of 5 liters plant-1 application-1 day-1. The frequency of irrigation was applied two times per day at seedling stage (1-3 months after planting), three times at the early vegetative stage (4-6 MAP), four times at the late vegetative stage (7-9 MAP), and five times at flagleaf stage (10-12 MAP). On the other hand, placement application of N, P2O5, K2O using complete fertilizer was done at 14 g plant-1 in every three months for the first six months and was increased to 40 g plant-1 in every three months for the next six months after planting. The results of this study showed that plant height, cumulative leaf area, pseudostem length and base girth of abaca significantly improved when the light was further reduced to 50%. The application of NPK fertilizer and combination of irrigation-fertilization further enhanced the growth performance of abaca. Statistical analysis showed that shade, NPK fertilization and combination of irrigation-fertilization positively affected dry matter production, crop growth rate, leaf area ratio and net assimilation rate from seedling to flagleaf stage. Furthermore, biomass allocation and NPK distribution among abaca organs was significantly affected by high radiation and/or temperature at seedling and early vegetative stages, and differential leaf senescence at flagleaf stage where shade plays a considerable function. The amount of NPK absorbed by each organ was influenced by the growth made during the different stages of crop development. Meanwhile, irrigation and fertilizer application further improved biomass allocation that considerably increased NPK absorption and distribution among plant parts. With regards to agronomic response, the abaca planted under different light regimes showed that 50% shade had significantly higher fiber yield compared to those that were under other light treatments since the plants pseudostem under such treatment were longer, bigger and heavier. The combination of irrigation and fertilization could further enhance fiber yield to as much as 141% (compared to the control) but this was not enough to offset the effects of shade on the physiological performance of the plant which significantly increased fiber yield to as much as 265% (compared to the control). Statistical analysis showed that shade and irrigation-fertilizer application had no significant effect on fiber fineness and tensile strength. The superior productivity of abaca in response to shade was due to the avoidance of photoinhibition and photooxidative damage that negatively affected the abaca grown under full sunlight at seedling and early vegetative stage. Likewise, the detrimental effect of photoinhibition on the photosynthetic capacity of abaca grown in full sunlight significantly decreased biomass production and allocation among abaca organs. The amount of NPK absorbed by each organ was influenced by high radiation causing photooxidative damage at seedling stage and differential leaf senescence at flagleaf stage. This significantly affected the pattern of biomass allocation and NPK distribution among abaca plant organs. On the other hand, the application of fertilizer considerably enhanced biomass production but did not change the usual pattern of biomass and NPK distribution. The results showed that irrigation and fertilizer application cannot offset or equalize the positive effect of shade on the vegetative growth, physiological performance, and NPK absorption among plant organs.