Study of the effect of urea fertilizers, calcium phosphate, potassium sulfate and their synergy on the production of leaves and cuttings in aloe vera

Aloe is a medicinal plant with very high economic value. With the aim of providing suitable nutritional conditions to achieve higher yield and produce large number of highquality cuttings, an experiment was performed in Mahvalat city (Khorasan Razavi province) during 2016 growing season, a factorial design in the form of randomized complete blocks with 27 treatments and 3 replications. Experimental treatments were three fertilizers of urea, calcium phosphate and potassium sulfate, each with three levels of zero, 100 and 200 kg. The results showed the increasing effect of simultaneous consumption of nitrogen and phosphorus as well as nitrogen and potassium mainly on plant reproductive traits such as cuttings weight, number of cuttings and number of leaves per cuttings and cutting height, however, increasing effect of nitrogen and phosphorus on leaf length and number of leaves was also observed. Related to the yield of the mother plant was also seen. 70-80% of the maximum weight of cuttings, number of cuttings and number of leaves per cuttings and height of cuttings as well as maximum leaf length and number of leaves were obtained by consuming 100 kg of nitrogen, with 100 kg of phosphorus or with 100 kg of potassium. Further increase of phosphorus and potassium at the level of 100 kg of nitrogen led to the achievement of maximum traits related to cuttings and had little effect on traits related to the yield of the mother plant. The results of this study suggest that achieving a large number of quality cuttings in comparison with achieving the highest yield of the mother plant requires the same amount of nitrogen and double amounts of phosphorus and potassium.