CHIPILÍN BIOMASS PRODUCTION OF Crotalaria longirostrata Hook and Arn UNDER DIFFERENT FORMULATIONS OF FERTILIZATION AND SOLAR RADIATION LEVELS

Chipilín is a shrub species that grows wild in the tropical areas of Mexico and whose crude protein content is 31%. It is linked to food culture, mainly of the rural population. It is frequently found associated among tropical crops. Despite the fact that it is a plant genetic resource appreciated by rural families, its use continues to depend essentially on its natural reproduction and collection, perhaps because almost everything about the agronomic management of the plant is unknown. The objective of this work was to study the growth response and production of foliar biomass of Crotalaria longirostrata supplying different fertilization formulations (N, P and K) and different levels of solar radiation. A 3 x 3 factorial experiment was carried out, in a completely randomized design. The formulations were 45-30-26, 17-00-00 and 00-00-00, and the radiation levels were 50%, 65% and 100%, resulting in 9 treatments with 8 repetitions; and as an experimental unit a pot with a plant was considered. The results indicate significant differences (p 0.05) between formulations, and solar radiation levels for all the variables considered, such as basal stem diameter, number of lateral branches, dry biomass of stem, leaf and root. In all cases the formulation 45-30-26 turned out to be better, for example at 100 days the amount of dry leaf biomass was 17.5 grams per plant, while with the formulations of 17-00-00 and 00-00 -00 was 6.0 and 3.5 grams per plant respectively. In the case of solar radiation, 15.0, 8.0 and 3.0 grams were obtained for 100%, 65% and 50% respectively. Therefore it is concluded that the best formulation and percentage of solar radiation for the production of Crotalaria longirostrata is 45-30-26 with 100% solar radiation, and that the amount of total fresh biomass that a plant can produce depends on the basal diameter of its stem.