Growth, photosynthetic pigments and production of essential oil of long-pepper under different light conditions

ABSTRACT Piper hispidinervum C. DC. is popularly known as long-pepper and it owns a commercial value due to the essential oil it produces. Long-pepper oil is rich in safrole and eugenoln components that have insecticidal, fungicidal and bactericidal activity. It has been establish that to medicinal plants light influences not only growth but also essential oil production. The growth, the content of photosynthetic pigments and the essential oil production of Piper hispidinervum at greenhouses with different light conditions was evaluated. The treatments were characterized by cultivation of plants for 180 days under different light conditions, produced by shading greenhouses with 50% and 30% of natural incident irradiance, two colored shading nets red (RN) and blue (BN) both blocking 50% of the incident radiation and one treatment at full-sun (0% of shade). The results showed that the treatments of 50% shade and RN and BN were the ones which stimulated the greater growth. Blue and red light also had the best production of photosynthetic pigments. Essential oil yielded more under full sun therefore this is the most indicated condition to produce seedlings for the chemical and pharmaceutical industry.

Antifungal activity of Piper diospyrifolium Kunth (Piperaceae) essential oil

In vitro activity of the essential oil from Piper diospyrifolium leaves was tested using disk diffusion techniques. The antifungal assay showed significant potencial antifungal activity: the oil was effective against several clinical fungal strains. The majority compounds in the essential oil were identified as sesquiterpenoids by GC-MS and GC-FID techniques.

Propagação vegetativa de espécies silvestres do gênero Piper, com potencial para uso como porta enxertos em pimenta-do-reino (Piper nigrun) / Vegetative propagation of wild species of the genus Piper, with potential for use as rootstocks in black pepper (Piper nigrun)

O estabelecimento de espécies usadas como porta-enxerto, importantes na olericultura, podem ser multiplicadas por meio da estaquia com auxílio de fitorreguladores. Objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar a influência do AIB no estabelecimento de espécies nativas do gênero Piper com potencial de uso como porta-enxerto de Piper nigrum. Estacas de P. Arboreum, P. amplum e P. sp foram submetidas a diferentes dosagens de AIB (0, 2000, 4000, 6000 e 8000 mg.L-1) e mantidas em estufa agrícola com irrigação intermitente com temperatura e umidade controlados. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi inteiramente casualizado em esquema fatorial 3x5 (3 espécies de Piper x 5 dosagens de AIB) e composto por 3 repetições por tratamento, sendo cada parcela composta por 10 estacas. A avaliação foi realizada aos 45 dias de transplantio e as variáveis analisadas foram: índice de sobrevivência, número médio de folhas, número médio de brotos e comprimento médio do maior broto. A espécie Piper arboreum apresentou bons resultados referentes ao crescimento da parte aérea independentemente da concentração de AIB empregada.

The establishment of species used as rootstock, which are important in horticulture crop scan may be multiplied, with the aid of growth regulators, by cutting. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of IBA on the establishment of native species of the genus Piper with potential use as rootstock of Piper nigrum. Cuttings of P. arboreum, P. amplum and P. sp were treated with different concentrations of IBA (0 ,2000, 4000, 6000 and 8000mg.L-1) and maintained in a greenhouse with intermittent irrigation, with the temperature and humidity controlled. The experimental design was completely randomized in a factorial 3x5 plan (3 Piper species x5 doses of IBA) and comprising of three repetitions per treatment, each plot consisting of 10 cuttings. The evaluation was performed at 45 days of transplanting and the analyzed variables were: survival rate, the number of leaves, the number of shoots and the length of the largest shoot. The Piper arboretum species showed the best growth results for the aerial part independent of the IBA concentration used.