Under the direction of Prof. Jesús F. Araujo Contreras, a professor in the Department of Rural Extension at the School of Forest Engineering and director of the Institute for Forest Development Research at the University of Los Andes in Mérida, Venezuela, tests with Silabaal® were conducted at the Santa Ana estate in Mérida, Venezuela.
The efficacy of slow-release Silabaal® was evaluated over a six-week period at the Santa Ana farm in Mérida, Venezuela, on coffee plants (Monte Claro and Araguaney varieties) and passion fruit. Physiognomic and qualitative variables were recorded using an experimental design with treated plots and control groups. The results show that the application of Silabaal, supplemented with beneficial microorganisms (EM-1) every 15 days, significantly accelerated vegetative growth compared to the control groups. For the Monte Claro coffee variety, the average height increased from 83.45 to 87.20 cm, and for Araguaney, from 85.20 to 89.20 cm; the plants exhibited greater robustness, a vibrant leaf sheen, and were free of disease. In the nursery, the treated seedlings showed significant increases in height (up to 18.50 cm) and stem collar diameter, with no mortality recorded. Similarly, in passion fruit cultivation, the fertilizer led to early flowering and promoted uniform fruit set. This suggests that Silabaal® efficiently optimizes early agricultural yield and mitigates the physical limitations caused by soil compaction in mountainous regions.