Agroeconomic performance of banana tree under nutritional management with Trichoderma asperellum, in a family production system

Banana tree cultivation requires high doses of fertilizers to reach the productive potential of improved cultivars. On the other hand, more than 70% of banana plantations are concentrated in family farming, which has low capital availability and technology. The present study aimed to evaluate the ability of Trichoderma asperellum to improve the efficiency of nutrient use and economic viability of the banana tree cultivation under nutritional management with native T. asperellum, in a family production system in the Amazon region. Three treatments were tested: 100% of fertilizers (control), 50% of fertilizers + T. asperellum (TA) and 100% of fertilizers + TA. Fertilization consisted of inorganic fertilizers and poultry litter. The first banana cycle production and the economic viability of the practices were evaluated. The inoculation of TA + 100% of fertilizers increased productivity by 23%. The banana productivity was similar for control treatments (100%) and 50% for fertilizers + TA, however, using 50% of fertilizers reduced the production costs by 7.2% in the year of implantation and, in 17, 6% from the 2nd year of planting. In six years, the inoculation with T. asperellum increased revenues by US＄ 8,944.40 with 100% of fertilizers, and by US＄ 1,936.35 with 50% of fertilizers. Our results show for the first time that using T. asperellum in the nutritional management of bananas improves the agronomic performance of the crop, being economically viable in a family production system in the Amazon. The use of biostimulants is a promising practice to increase the earnings for farmers and make banana production more sustainable in the region.