Mineral composition in different organs of <i>Tapirira guianensis</i> Aubl. in part of the Atlantic Rainforest of Goiana – PE, Brazil

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the concentration and distribution of nutrients in distinct organs of Tapirira guianensis Aubl. (known locally as cupiúva), a pioneering species in the Atlantic Rainforest belonging to the Anacardiaceae family. The study area pertains to the Megaó Farm located in the municipality of Goiana, Pernambuco state, Brazil. Nutrient determinations were performed on the leaves, branches, bark and trunk. Samples were submitted to nitro-perchloric digestion (P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Fe, Mn, Zn) and sulphuric acid digestion (N). Colorimetry was used for the analytic determination of  P, whereas turbidimetry was used for S; K was determined using the flame photometry, and the Ca, Mg, Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn contents were obtained by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. N content was obtained in extracts prepared through sulphuric acid digestion by the Kjeldahl method. Nutrient distribution in the organs of the plant followed a decreasing order: leaves, bark, branches and trunk. N was the nutrient with the highest content in all parts of the plant: 2.59 g kg^-1 (trunk); 6.31 g kg^-1 (bark); 5.54 g kg^-1 (branches); and 15.20 g kg^-1 (leaves). The sequence of macronutrients was N > Ca > Mg > K > S > P in the leaves, bark and branches, and N > Ca > S > P > Mg > K in the trunk. Fe was the micronutrient which presented the greatest concentration in all the aerial biomass: 117.27 mg kg^-1 (trunk); 112.61 mg kg^-1 (bark); 83.00 mg kg^-1 (branches); and 119.40 mg kg^-1 (leaves). The distribution of micronutrients in all the Tapirira guianensis Aubl. components was Fe > Zn > Mn.