Fertilización foliar en la calidad de tallos de lisianthus ‘flamenco purple’ (Eustoma grandiflorum (Raf.) Shinners.)

Objetive: Evaluate two sources of foliar fertilization to improve the quality and post-harvest life of lisianthus stems (Eustoma grandiflorum) ‘Flamenco Purple’.Design/methodology/approach: Lisianthus plants were sprayed with different sources of fertilization (T1: Bayfolan Forte®; T2: Humifert® (Cosmosel) (10 mL L1); T3: (Ca(NO3)2+ KNO3) and T4: Humifert® (Cosmosel) (20 mL L1) every week, from the appearance of the first flower buds, with four applications. The variables evaluated in pre-harvest were: plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves and number of flower buds, and in post-harvest: vase life, fresh weight of the stems, and nutritional analysis (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Cu and Zn) of flowers, leaves and stem. An experimental design used was completely randomized and comparison of means (Tukey, 0.05) with 8 replicates.Results: The treatment with Humifert® (20 mL L1) significantly increased the stem length (16 %) related to the control, this treatment implied the presence of humic acids that improve the absorption of nutrients in the leaf. Also the Ca(NO3)2+ KNO3 treatment increased the vase life by 2.8 days more than the control stems.Study limitations/implications: Establish a cost-benefit relationship to determine the minimum number of foliar fertilizer applications that guarantee higher stem quality.Findings/conclusions: The application of Humifert® (20 mL L1) and Ca(NO3)2+ KNO3 improved the quality of the lisianthus stems ‘Flamenco Purple’, are a good option for flower growers.