Abstract
ABSTRACT Salinity, in general, affects the plant growth and development, making it a limiting problem for the agricultural production. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of inoculant doses of Azospirillum brasilense on the emergence and growth of maize submitted to salinity concentrations of the irrigation water. The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse, with a randomized blocks design, in a 3 x 5 factorial [A. brasilense doses (0.0, 0.32 and 0.48 mL/100 seeds) and levels of electrical conductivity of the water (0.3, 0.6, 1.1, 1.7 and 2.3 dS m-1)], in 4 blocks, totaling 60 experimental units. The emergence percentage, emergence speed index, plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves, leaf area, leaf dry mass, stem dry mass, tassel dry mass and root dry mass were evaluated. The treatments between salinity and inoculation had no effect on seedling emergence. The salinity significantly affected growth; however, the number of leaves increased in 12.8 % (V8) and 18.8 % (V10), when comparing the difference between the lowest and highest studied salinity. As for the plant height, there was an increase of 3.7 % up to the threshold salinity of the crop (1.1 dS m-1). There was an increase in the root dry mass with the application of inoculant doses at each studied salt level.
Highlights
Maize (Zea mays L.) is one of the main grain crops produced in Brazil, especially in the rainy periods, due to its use in family faming, which, in several cases, use this crop for family consumption
By evaluating the seed quality of four varieties of corn inoculated with A. brasilense, there was a significant effect of inoculation on the emergence percentage and emergence speed index, Pereira et al (2015) considered a very small difference, concluding that these results generated negligible effects between the treatments
The studied salinity levels of the irrigation water and Azospirillum brasilense doses do not affect the emergence of maize seedlings; 2
Summary
Maize (Zea mays L.) is one of the main grain crops produced in Brazil, especially in the rainy periods, due to its use in family faming, which, in several cases, use this crop for family consumption. As that crop originates from a tropical climate, throughout its vegetative cycle, it requires heat and water. In line with these factors, it needs ecophysiological requirements, because the processes of photosynthesis, respiration and transpiration are directly linked to heat, while the growth, development and translocation of photoassimilates are due to water availability (Fancelli 2015). The water quality becomes extremely important in the maize cultivation, especially in semiarid regions, requiring water use policies, due to its scarcity. The use of saline water has been studied for some years; maize, according to Ayers & Westcot (1999) and Farooq et al (2015), H.
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