<span name="style_bold">Effect of the density of planting on growth and yield of plants on first crop of datil banana plants (<span name="style_italic">Musa</span> AA).</span> In order to determine the effect of different densities of planting (1.666, 2.000, 2.222 and 2.500 plants. ha<span name="style_italic">Musa</span> AA).<span name="style_sup">-1</span>) on growth and the yield of banana datil plants (<span name="style_italic">Musa</span> AA, cv. Pisang MAS) first crop, an experiment was established in the Caribbean region of Costa Rica. The height of the pseudo stem and the amount of days from planting to harvest increased at the greater densities, with a linear effect (p=0.0001 and p=0.0263; respectively). The circumference of the pseudo stem, as well as the amount of leaves at flowering and harvesting, were not affected (linear effect; p&gt;0.1585 and quadratic effect; p&gt;0.0723). The weight of the bunch showed a declining linear effect (p=0.0076), but the number of hands and fruits by hand, as well as the thickness of fruits in the first and last hand, were not affected (linear effect; p&gt;0.1165 and quadratic effect; p&gt;0.2094) by the plants density. The bunch weight effect occurred primarily between treatments of 1.666, 1.700 and 2.200 plants.ha<span name="style_sup">-1</span> and the treatment most densely populated (2.500 plants.ha<span name="style_sup">-1</span>). Results suggest the need to evaluate on this cultivar more intensive production strategies, emulating the technology developed for plantain (<span name="style_italic">Musa</span> AAB) high-productivity (high densities of population, renewal of planting after each crop and planting blocks staggered in time). The use of this productive strategy could represent, as has been demonstrated for bananas, a more profitable and secure method than the traditional system of low population density and perennial production management. AAB) high-productivity (high densities of population, renewal of planting after each crop and planting blocks staggered in time). The use of this productive strategy could represent, as has been demonstrated for bananas, a more profitable and secure method than the traditional system of low population density and perennial production management.

Datil banana; Pisang Mas; plant density