Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is a strategic crop for food security, with significant economic importance for many countries. Silicon (Si) is a mineral element that increases both rice resistance to diseases and yield. In this study we evaluated, in two crop seasons, the effect of calcium silicate (source of Si), incorporated in the soil, on disease control, grain yield and its quality on three rice cultivars grown in flooded soils in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The leaf diseases only occurred at the end of the crop cycle and in low intensity. Plants grown on plots supplied with calcium silicate showed higher concentration of Si in leaves and lower intensity of two diseases (brown spot and leaf scald), but without significant effect on grain yield and on quality parameters (brown rice content, head rice yield and translucent rice content). Grain yield and quality parameters were only affected by cultivars. In conclusion, calcium silicate fertilization did not influence grain yield and its quality under low intensity and / or occurrence of biotic stress in final development stages of the plant.
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