Allelopathy of Ricinus communis and light spectrum variation decrease emergence and growth of Cyperus rotundus

Weeds negatively influence agricultural production. However, those losses depend on weed specie, its time of emergence, and period of interference on agricultural crops. Synthetic herbicides are commonly used to control these plants species; however, they may cause damage to the environment, human beings and animals health, and this problem justify the need to develop alternative bioherbicides. To evaluate the allelopathic potential of Ricinus communis (Castor bean) and light spectrum variation on the emergence and growth of Cyperus rotundus L., a trial was carried out in a protected environment with 15% of brightness reduction at the Center for Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the Paraíba State University. Four aqueous extract concentrations of R. communis leaves were tested (0, 5, 10, and 15%) and four light spectrums variations (white, purple, blue, and red lights). Variables such as emergence, length, dry matter accumulation and growth rates of shoots and root of C. rotundus seedlings were assessed. Data were analyzed by normality test, analysis of variance, polynomial regression, and averages test. Soot and root emergence, length, and dry matter accumulation of C. rotundus seedlings were reduced due to the allelopathy caused by R. communis aqueous extract leaves (15% concentration) and under purple or red light spectrum radiation.

Desenvolvimento e produção de ecótipos de feijoeiro cultivados na época das águas sob irrigação suplementar / Development and production of common bean ecotypes grown in the rainy season under supplementary irrigation

O cultivo do feijoeiro, Phaseolus vulgaris L., possui grande importância para o Brasil, sobretudo no âmbito econômico e social. Assim, a utilização de ecótipos de feijoeiro promissores associada à otimização dos recursos hídricos configura importante estratégia para a agricultura sustentável em regiões semiáridas. Objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar o comportamento de ecótipos de feijoeiro cultivados na época das águas com irrigação suplementar. O experimento foi no campus Experimental de Ecofisiologia Vegetal da Universidade Estadual da Paraíba, situada na microrregião de Catolé do Rocha, PB. Utilizou-se o delineamento experimental em blocos casualizados em fatorial 3x4, sendo três ecótipos de feijoeiro (Eco1= G2227, Eco2= BRA 130583 CIAT G6490 e Eco3= BAT 477) e quatro lâminas de irrigação suplementar com 50; 75; 100 e 125% da evapotranspiração de referência (ETo), em três repetições. As variáveis analisadas foram: percentagem e índice de velocidade de emergência, comprimento da haste principal, taxa de crescimento relativo, número de vagens por planta, número de grãos por vagem, massa de 100 grãos, fitomassa da parte aérea e eficiência fotossintética. Os ecótipos de feijoeiro analisados divergem entre si quanto aos aspectos de germinação, crescimento, componentes da produção (NGV e FMA) e eficiência fotossintética. O ecótipo 1 apresenta melhor desempenho quanto aos componentes da produção observados nas condições de Semiárido.

The cultivation of common bean Phaseolus vulgaris L. has great importance for Brazil, especially in the economic and social sector. Thus, the use of promising bean ecotypes associated with optimization of water resources sets an important strategy for sustainable agriculture in semiarid regions. This study was developed in order to evaluate the behavior of common bean ecotypes grown in the rainy season with supplementary irrigation. The experiment was carried out at campus Experimental Plant Ecophysiology at the State University of Paraiba, located in the microregion of Catolé do Rocha - PB. A randomized block experimental design in factorial 3x4 was used, with three common bean ecotypes (Eco1 = G2227, Eco2 BRA = 130583 CIAT G6490 and Eco3 BAT = 477) and four levels of supplementary irrigation (50, 75, 100 and 125% of reference evapotranspiration, ETo) in three replications. The variables analyzed were: percentage and emergence speed index, main branch length, growth rate relative crop, number of pods per plant, number of grains per pod, weight of 100 grains, shoots dry matter and photosynthetic efficiency. The bean ecotypes analyzed were different in aspects of germination, growth, yield components (NVG e FMA) and photosynthetic efficiency. The ecotype 1 shows better performance on the yield components observed in the semiarid conditions.