PLANTIO DIRETO DE ALFACE CRESPA CULTIVADA COM DISTINTOS ESPAÇAMENTOS NO OESTE CATARINENSE

Abstract

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is a major leafy vegetable eaten around the world, and the curly group lettuce is the most commercialized. In Brazil, it is considered the most important feeding vegetable, providing jobs and generating revenues for millions of people. This study aims to evaluate the agronomic performance of the commercial cultivar Mônica in two crop cycles at the Instituto Federal Catarinense (Catarinense Federal Institute), Santa Catarina (SC) State, Concórdia Campus, Brazil. In the first cycle, the experiment was carried out in the field, arranged in a randomized block design in 3 x 2 factorial scheme, and the effects of 3 levels of the spacing factor (0.20 x 0.20 m; 0.25 x 0. 25 m; and 0.30 x 0.30 m), associated with two levels of the conventional and no-tillage system factor with millet (Pennisetum americanum L.) in four replicates, totaling 24 experimental units. In the second cycle, the experiment was carried out with 3 x 2 factorial scheme and the same spacing and system factor from the first cycle, in five replicates, obtaining 30 experimental units. As mudas foram produzidas em bandejas de isopor com substrato específico e transplantadas ao atingir 4 a 5 folhas definitivas. The seedlings were produced in trays of polystyrene with specific substrate and transplanted when reaching four to five definitive leaves. Each experimental plot was composed by four planting lines, with 28 plants per plot, using 6 central plants of each experimental plot for analysis. In the first cycle, the plants were harvested at 39th day after transplanting, and in the second cycle, they were harvested at 44th day after transplanting. Soil temperature, fresh and dry mass of spontaneous plants (g plant-1), fresh and dry mass of roots (g plant-1), plant diameter (mm), number of commercial leaves (plant-1), higher than 3.0 cm, fresh and dry mass of the plants (g plant-1), and fresh and dry mass of the plants (kg ha-1) were the variables evaluated. The analyzes were carried out using the software R and the data were evaluated by the Tukey test at 5% probability. It was noticed that the lettuce grown under no-tillage showed a higher fresh and dry mass in every spacing. However, the higher yield per area of fresh and dry mass was noticed in the 20 x 20 cm spacing. Thus, it is concluded that smaller spacing provides gains in lettuce yield and that no-tillage is a management system that can decrease the incidence of weeds and increase lettuce yield for the western region of Santa Catarina State, Brazil.