IRRIGATION WITH CARBONATED WATER AND NUTRIENT AVAILABILITY - TESTS ONSTRAWBERRY PLANTS

A research was carried out to study the nutrient availability and yiel d performances of a strawberry crop cv. 'Chandler' in response to equi valent depths (100% of ETM) of CO2 enriched water and plain water appl ied with different irrigation frequencies. Plots were arranged in a co mplete randomized block design replicated four times, using mulch and a drip irrigation system adopting 4 1/h emitters. The crop was covered by a plastic tunnel following treatment differentiation. The statisti cal analysis revealed an increased availability of Cu, Zn, Ca, Mg, and Mn for the CO2 treatment, probably linked with the pH reduction (from 7,5 to 6,5). The increased nutrient uptake in the CO2 enriched water treatment may be the cause of the commercial yield enhancement (8,6 %) and reduction in the weight of deformed berries (-12,1 %).