Differentiated Microelement Content in Anthurium (anthurium Cultorum Birdsey) Leaves*

The main objective of the study was to determine the nutritional status in terms of the content of microelements, such as iron, manganese, zinc, copper and boron in several standard cultivars of anthurium (Anthurium cultorum Birdsey) called Baron, Choco, Midori, Pistache, President and Tropical. The plants were grown in expanded clay (ř 8-18 mm) using drip fertigation with standard nutrient for anthurium grown in inert substrates with the following components: N-NH4<1.0, N-NO3 7.5, P 1.0, K 4.5, Ca 1.5, Mg 1.0, S-SO4 1.5 (mmol dm–3), Fe 15, Mn 3.0, Zn 3.0, Cu 0.5, B 20.0, Mo 0.5 (μmol dm–3), pH 5.5-5.7, EC 1.5-1.8 mS cm–1. Every two months, anthurium indicator parts were sampled for chemical analyses. The indicator parts included fully developed leaves from plants after freshly cut flowers. The average microelement content in the indicator parts showed the following values (in mg kg–1 d.m.): Fe 47.6-58.0, Mn 36.9-45.1, Zn 60.3-67.6, Cu 5.01-6.43, B 63.5-89.0. It was found that a significant effect on the nutritional status with respect to microelements was produced by the plant cultivar type. The highest content of iron in the indicator parts was found in cv. Baron; manganese was most abundant in cv. Choco; cv. Midori was the richest in zinc and boron appeared in the highest level in cv. Pistache. Coefficients of variability (CV) of the analyzed microelements were determined. The smallest variability during 3 years of studies was shown by copper (CV 15.4-24.3%), a mean value was found in boron (CV 20.9-26.7%) and in iron (CV 25.1-31.4%), while the highest values were shown by zinc (CV 39.7-44.7%) and by manganese (CV 40.4-58.5%).