In this article we focus on copper as a fertilizer in citrus cultivation. In the same way we are referring to Cupronate® and Cupro Activ® as the two most efficient solutions for treating citrus with copper within the JISA Advanced Agro catalogue.
Copper application in citrus
Copper is an essential microelement in all crops. It’s more available when the soil has acidic pH than when we have basic pH, because it’s fixed to the clays present in the soil. The most unfavourable conditions for the availability of copper by the plants are in those plantations carried out in limestone soils and with a fertilizer rich in phosphates.
The copper deficiency in citrus is not easy to identify. It’s located in the young leaves, which are twisted and have a bluish-green color. In addition, they may also present some chlorosis.
The effect of copper nutrition on crops is more noticeable. Copper is an element that is part of coenzymes that participate in the respiration and photosynthesis processes of plants. Its presence in cell walls favours lignification and healing of plant tissues.
Fungicidal and bactericidal properties of copper
Apart from the nutritional value of copper in orange, lemon and other citrus trees, this element also has fungicidal and bactericidal properties.
We can assure you that a correct copper nutrition also helps to maintain a correct health of the crops, since they confer protection against diseases and adverse environmental conditions.
Citrus watering is caused by Phytophthora sp., depending on where it is located, we can find a gummy exudate on the trunk, a rot on the neck or a rot on the fruits.
Pierre Marie Alexis Millardet, professor of Botany at the Bordeaux Faculty of Sciences discovered the fungicidal and bactericidal properties of copper. That’s why, for more than 150 years, different phytosanitary products have been used for this purpose, such as Bordeaux mixture, cupric hydroxide and copper oxychloride.
Excess copper in crops
Excess copper can cause antagonistic effects with other nutritional elements such as molybdenum, iron, manganese and zinc. Copper toxicity can cause chlorosis and delays in root and sprouts growth mainly.
Cupronate® and Cupro Activ®, efficient solutions for copper treatments in citrus
The JISA Advanced Agro technical team recommends complementing the copper-based phytosanitary treatments with the use of soluble copper-based products that can be absorbed by the plant and be naturally less sensitive to diseases, thus reducing the use of phytosanitary products and improving the performance of our crop.
Copper-based liquid fertilizer
Cupronate® is a solution of copper complexed with gluconic acid that is rapidly assimilated both by the root and by the foliar route, because it has a great capacity for stomatal penetration.
With its application, the synthesis by plants of phytoalexins is favoured and it confers physical resistance to cell walls, which are less susceptible to attack by fungi and bacteria.
Solid copper-based fertilizer
Cupro Activ® is a solid 14% chelated copper, for use by fertigation and which remains available to the plant in the soil for a longer time due to its chelating formulation.
Citrus groves with adequate nutrition perform well in production and are less susceptible to disease. For any information on the use of our products, you can contact the technical-commercial team of JISA Advanced Agro.