AVALIAÇÃO DE PLÂNTULAS DE MELÃO AMARELO SOB DIFERENTES SUBSTRATOS

Abstract

Brazil is a major world producer of fruit, among these stands out the production of melon. It is traditionally planted under direct sowing, but the production of seedlings in containers has shown good results. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the best techniques and materials to be used, as well as the substrate that provides more favorable conditions for its development. The objective was to evaluate the development of yellow melon (Cucumis melo L.) seedlings, cultivated under different alternative substrates. The experimental design was the entirely randomized (DIC), with 5 treatments and 4 repetitions. The treatments consisted of: Commercial substrate based on Bioflora® vermiculite; Red earth + vegetal ash in the proportion of 2:1; Coconut shell fiber + Red earth in the proportion of 1:1; Washed coarse sand; Red earth + Bovine soil in the proportion of 2:1. Sowing was done in 200 mL disposable packages with two seeds. After the emergency, thinning was carried out leaving only one seedling. The data collection was carried out on the 27th day after sowing. The following parameters were evaluated: emergence of seedlings, emergence speed index, height of seedlings, number of leaves/plant, diameter of the neck, green and dry mass of the aerial part and and dry mass of the root. The analysis of variance was performed by Statistical Program R and the means compared by Tukey's 5% probability test. As for the emergence of seedlings the treatments did not differ from each other, with the exception of the earth + vegetal ash treatment, where no plant emerged. The treatments: Commercial Substrate, Coconut Fiber + Soil and Sand presented higher values regarding the emergence speed index. For the height of plants and number of leaves, the treatments with Commercial Substrate and Coconut Fiber + Soil presented the same among themselves and higher than the others. As for the neck diameter, green mass of the aerial part, dry mass of the aerial part and dry mass of the roots the Commercial Substrate treatment obtained greater expressiveness. Thus, the commercial substrate provided better development conditions for Yellow melon seedlings.