Many a high performance athlete can be seen taking a bite of a banana. The fruit is rich in potassium, a mineral essential for muscle movement. But bananas themselves, which are grown in more than 150 countries, also need a boost of potassium to perform and yield well.

Bananas need a boost
A banana crop needs a lot of potassium, 600 kg K₂O/ha, for optimum growth. Our Polysulphate has the benefit that as well as providing potassium, it also contains sulphur, magnesium and calcium which are also important for healthy productivity. It is Polysulphate fertilizer that is under scrutiny now in an important pilot study.

Shoots and leaves
The trial is in Southern Israel, where farmer Marcelo Tregerman is working with specialists to measure the benefits of Polysulphate fertilizer. His farm is an organic banana plantation and member of the Israel Bio-Organic Agriculture Association (IBOAA). The bananas are cultivated on sandy soil and irrigated with desalinated water, which is very low in calcium and magnesium. As a natural product, Polysulphate is approved for use in organic farming.

To see how and why this trial is being carried out (within the framework of the Center for Fertilization and Plant Nutrition), then do take a look at the short film Investigating Benefits of Polysulphate on Bananas.

With the supervision and guidance of IBOAA Soil Fertility and Plant Nutrition specialist, Dr. Yzhar Tugendhaft and ICL Haifa agronomist, Nitzan Shatzkin, Mr. Tregerman applied standard Polysulphate to selected young shoots. The treated plants’ growth will be measured right through to the yield of fruit they each produce.

High performance regime
Not many of us have training regimes to become high performance athletics. Nevertheless it seems that any mealtime - or in between - is a good time to get our own banana boost. Even, some say, a banana late at night is a good idea as a marvelous source of magnesium and potassium to help relax overstressed muscles!

It is high performance in the banana crop that matters to farmers. We will be sure to report back to you on how Polysulphate fertilizer contributes to the banana crop’s agronomic regime.