PLANTAS DE COBERTURA NO CONTROLE DE DOENÇAS CAUSADAS POR PATÓGENOS DE SOLO NA CULTURA DE BATATA

Abstract

Potato is the main vegetable grown in Brazil and in the world. Its high cost of production leaves a tight profit margin for the producer. Seeking to increase the production system sustainability and reduce risks, the objective was to verify the effect of the use of cover crops on phytopathogens in potato growing soil. The work was developed at Instituto Federal Goiano Campus Morrinhos. The cultivation condition was reproduced in reinforced concrete tubes filled with subsoil with corrected acidity and fertility. In these, the potatoes were distributed and followed by the inoculation of soil phytopathogens. After the cultivation and observation of the damage occurrence to the crops, a preliminary analysis of the biological attributes of the soil was carried out and the potatoes were removed for planting cover crops. After the cycle of these cultures, the soil bioanalysis was repeated. After the return of the potato to the concrete tubes, the disease incidence and productivity were evaluated. Protocols were established to reduce soil pathogens with the use of different coverages, bringing predictability to the production chain and allowing the producer to mitigate risks in the potato cultivation, presenting itself as another alternative to be used in association/or substitute for different phytosanitary products.