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Interpretive Summaries:
2011 - Best Crop and Fertilizer Management Effects on Yield of Oil Palm in Ecuador
2010 - Best Crop and Fertilizer Management Effects on Yield of Oil Palm
2009 - Best Crop and Fertilizer Management Effects on Yield of Oil Palm
2008 - Best Crop and Fertilizer Management Effects on Yield of Oil Palm in Ecuador
Best Crop and Fertilizer Management Effects on Yield of Oil Palm, 2010
Our study in the Olepsa plantation was terminated in 2010. The project suffered first from a workers’ strike that put all activities in Olepsa plantation on hold, but also from a severe drought extending about two months longer than usual. As a result of these problems, we decided to end the project and its field management activities. We nevertheless collected information on yield from the plots after the workers’ strike was solved. Interestingly, we observed that in the plots where best management plus balanced fertilization were implemented, the yield reflected about a 20% increase with respect to the other treatments. This response occurred even though the large drought effects that cut the average yield in half for all the plantation. We feel that the reason for this difference is a reduced water demand as a result of much smaller leaf area, explained with the leaf pruning that is an important part of the best management system for oil palm.
The project has currently moved to the Tarragona plantation, located much closer to the Research Center for Oil Palm (CIPAL). In spite of the very low yields (5 t fruit bunch/ha) the new study area starts with, we expect to have trends in yield increases with best management practices similar to those noticed in the years of study in Olepsa.
The study in Tarragona will maintain the same treatments tested at Olepsa: 1) regular plantation practice [no leaf pruning, harvest with 15 days intervals, NK fertilization], 2) regular leaf pruning, 3) leaf pruning and weekly harvest, 4) treatment 3 plus balanced fertilization, and 5) all the previously listed best crop and fertilizer management plus chemical weed control within a close circle around each plant. Ecuador-13
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