Sugar cane plays an important economic-social and political role in Brazil. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of manganese doses and sources on sugar cane. The experiment was conducted on the Sitio Fujimoto, an area administered by the Distillery Vale do Paraná S/A Alcohol and Sugar in Suzanápolis, São Paulo state. The experiment was arranged in a randomized block, 5 x 3 factorial design, with 5 manganese rates (0, 2.5, 5.0, 7.5 and 10.0 kg ha-1) and 3 sources (chelate, FTE and manganese sulfate), applied in the furrow, with four replications. The plots consisted of four 5 m long rows, spaced 1.5 m apart. The sugar cane variety RB 86-7515 was evaluated in two harvests. The Mn sources produced similar stalk yields, for plant cane as well as first ratoon cane. The Mn chelate resulted in more stalks per row meter in sugarcane ratoon. The Mn rates did not affect the stalk yield of plant cane and ratoon, but increased the number of internodes and stem diameter in plant cane up to 6.9 and 6.6 kg ha-1 Mn, respectively.
Saccharum spp; fertilization; micronutrients; tillers
