Embrapa launches publication on the nutritional status of soils and coffee trees in the Matas de Minas region

Brazil has been, for several decades, the largest producer, exporter and second largest consumer of coffee in the world. In 2020, the country produced more than 60 million 60kg processed bags, of which around 48 million were of Coffea arabica coffee, which represented around 80% of national production.

In this context, Minas Gerais stands out for being responsible for approximately 50% of national production, a state that has important coffee growing regions, among which the Matas de Minas region stands out, in the middle of the Atlantic Forest biome. This region, which is made up of 64 municipalities, has an undulating relief that favors the good development of coffee crops, which gives it a mild climate, especially at altitudes above 1.000m, as well as the type of soil and the traditional management developed. and carried out by producers to produce quality coffees. However, for commercial coffee production in the region, it is necessary to use good cultural practices, especially in relation to the correct management of the nutritional status of soils and coffee plants.

Specifically in relation to Matas de Minas, coffee growing in the region is predominantly family-based, with approximately 275 thousand hectares of crops, distributed across approximately 51 thousand properties, of which approximately 41 thousand are small rural properties, with less than 20 acre. In this context, small producers, due to their production characteristics, generally have scarce financial resources to invest in farming. Therefore, given the high cost of fertilizers, it is essential that these inputs are applied efficiently so that they are optimized.

To this end, as the coffee tree demands a large amount of nutrients, to ensure high productivity in crops, more attention must be paid to fertility, with the correct application of correctives and fertilizers. Thus, adequate nutrition can also promote plant resistance to the occurrence of pests and diseases, as well as enabling the production of better quality coffees, which meet different increasingly demanding consumer markets.

In order to provide more efficiency in the absorption and use of nutrients, it is necessary to correctly determine the plant's development phase, since each one of them has different nutritional requirements, as well as the type of nutrient and the respective quantity to be applied. Obviously, with the use of appropriate fertilizer management it is possible to achieve greater productivity with the lowest production cost.

With these objectives, to guide producers to reach the maximum productive potential in their crops, Embrapa Café, in coordination with the Café Research Consortium, is launching its fourteenth publication, from the Embrapa Documents series, entitled “Nutritional status of soils and coffee trees in the Matas de Minas region".

This publication from the Embrapa Documents series is available in full Delivery to Italy takes one or two business days, which was prepared by the following researchers: Williams Pinto Marques Ferreira (Embrapa Café), Adriene Woods Pedrosa (Federal University of Viçosa – UFV), Marcelo de Freitas Ribeiro (Agricultural Research Company of Minas Gerais - Epamig), Edgard Augusto de Toledo Picoli (UFV), Andre May (Embrapa Meio Ambiente) and Sérgio Maurício Lopes Donzeles (Epamig).

Finally, it is important to emphasize that chemical analyzes of the soil and the plant are fundamental for the correct nutritional management of the crop, as nutritional deficiencies, as well as excesses (toxicity), generally occur gradually and are considered difficult for the coffee grower to perceive. It should also be noted that this publication is the result of extensive research with the purpose of offering correct information to producers about the reality and importance of the nutritional status of soils and coffee trees cultivated in Matas de Minas, which is the second largest producing region of coffee in the State.

Visit the website of Embrapa Coffee to read in full the publication of Document Series No. 14 “Nutritional status of soils and coffee trees in the Matas de Minas region”, via the link:

http://ainfo.cnptia.embrapa.br/digital/bitstream/item/228158/1/Embrapa-Cafe-Documentos-14-24-11-21.pdf