Fertilizer guide · Bangladesh

Banana (Kola): how much fertilizer per plant?

Urea, TSP and MOP for the planting pit and each top dressing, from BARC's Fertilizer Recommendation Guide 2024.

Short answer

For one Banana (Kola) plant, BARC's Fertilizer Recommendation Guide 2024 gives about 543 g of urea, 498 g of TSP and 683 g of MOP for the whole crop, plus 15 kg of organic manure in the planting pit. The TSP goes into the pit; the urea and MOP go on later as 4 top dressings.

Dosed per plant for the whole crop, put on as a base dose in the pit and four top dressings.

Dose for each stage

The first row is the planting pit, the next rows are the top dressings in order, and the last row is the whole crop. The figures are grams per plant.

Yield goal about 20,230 kg per acre

Varieties in this group: BARI Kola-1, BARI Kola-2, BARI Kola-3, BARI Kola-4.

grams per plant
StageUrea (g)TSP (g)MOP (g)Organic manure (kg)S, Zn, B (g)
Whole crop (pit and all top dressings)5434986831550 · 3 · 3
Before planting (in the pit)049801550 · 3 · 3
Top dressing 11090141––
Top dressing 21090141––
Top dressing 31090141––
Top dressing 42170261––

Nitrogen and potassium go on in four turns: the first two months after the sucker is planted, then every two months, and the last one after the flower bud comes out. The last turn is bigger than the first three, as the guide's table shows.

Source: BARC, Fertilizer Recommendation Guide 2024, page 116.

Using DAP instead of TSP

DAP has the same 46% phosphate as TSP, so use the TSP figure as the DAP figure. DAP also carries 18% nitrogen (about 0.4 kg of urea saved per kg of DAP). The guide does not subtract it and neither do these tables, but you can take it off the urea if you want to.

How these numbers are worked out

BARC's guide gives grams of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) per tree for each age. We convert P to P₂O₅ (× 2.29) and K to K₂O (× 1.21), then divide by what is in the bag: urea 46% N, TSP 46% P₂O₅, MOP 60% K₂O. The guide's amounts are for the whole year; split them as shown under “When to apply”.

These are the guide's general doses for a healthy, well-managed tree, not a prescription for your orchard. Soil, variety, rainfall and crop load change what a tree needs. Check with your local Department of Agricultural Extension or horticulture officer.

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Fertilizer calculator questions

How much urea does a Banana (Kola) plant need?

According to BARC's Fertilizer Recommendation Guide 2024, about 543 g of urea per plant for the whole crop, put on in 4 top dressings. The table above gives the amount for each one.

How much TSP and MOP does a Banana (Kola) plant need?

About 498 g of TSP (all of it in the planting pit) and 683 g of MOP (in the top dressings) per plant for the whole crop, according to BARC's Fertilizer Recommendation Guide 2024.

When should I put fertilizer on Banana (Kola)?

Nitrogen and potassium go on in four turns: the first two months after the sucker is planted, then every two months, and the last one after the flower bud comes out. The last turn is bigger than the first three, as the guide's table shows.

Fertilizer doses for other crops