ABSTRACT
A rapidly increasing world population demands ever-increasing food production. In this context, modernagriculturemustuseeveryavailabletooltoproduceadequatelyandef˜ciently.Further, publicconcernaboutenvironmentalqualityandthelong-termproductivityofagroecosystemshas emphasizedtheneedtodevelopandimplementmanagementstrategiesthatmaintainsoilfertility atanadequatelevelwithoutdegradingsoilandwaterresources(Fageria,2009).Therefore,nutrient inputs must be supplied to replace those removed from the soil and to achieve higher yields from alimitedlandresource.Tomeetthesedemands,nutrientneedsmustbeaccuratelyidenti˜edand nutrients applied to achieve maximum bene˜t from their use.
