Shading And Slow Release Fertilizer Effects On The Growth Characteristics Of Assai Seedlings (Euterpe oleracea)

James Maciel De Araújo,Aureny Maria Pereira Lunz,Romeu De Carvalho Andrade Neto,Ueliton Oliveira De Almeida,João Ricardo De Oliveira

doi:10.1590/2179-8087.001918

James Maciel De Araújo, Aureny Maria Pereira Lunz + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/2179-8087.001918

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Abstract

ABSTRACT The objective of this work was to evaluate the initial growth of assai seedlings (Euterpe oleraceae) in response to shading and slow release fertilizer. The experiment was conducted at Embrapa Acre in a randomized block design using a 4 × 5 factorial scheme with three replicates and 10 plants per plot. The treatments consisted of four shade environments (20%, 30%, 50% and 75%) and five levels of slow release fertilizer (0.0, 2.5, 5.0, 7.5 and 10.0 kg m–3). The following characteristics were evaluated: plant height, number of leaves, stem diameter, leaf dry mass, stem dry mass, root dry mass, total dry mass, and seedlings quality index. The growth of assai seedlings was influenced by shade environment conditions and slow release fertilizer. Shade environment with 30% or 50% and a dose of 8 kg m–3 resulted in better quality seedlings.

Highlights

The assai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) is a plant of the Arecaceae family that occurs throughout the estuary of the Amazon River, mainly in the States of Pará, Amazonas, Maranhão and Amapá
The number of leaves was only influenced by the isolated effect of the shade environment (Table 2)
There was an adjustment to the quadratic regression model for different environments due to the applied slow release fertilizer doses (Figure 4)

Summary

Introduction

The assai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) is a plant of the Arecaceae family that occurs throughout the estuary of the Amazon River, mainly in the States of Pará, Amazonas, Maranhão and Amapá. According to Menezes et al (2008), it is the most productive palm of the Amazon region being the fruit its main product. Assai pulp is a source of mineral salts, mainly calcium and potassium, anthocyanins and fatty acids, and is considered an energetic food. Its functional value has been widely promoted, leading to an increase in demand for the fruit. As a consequence there is an increase in exploitation of areas containing native assai palm grove. There are crop implantations on solid ground, according to Yokomizo et al (2016), because extraction will not be able to meet growing demand

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