The objective of this work was to evaluate the possibility of reduction in the production cycle of physic nut (Jatropha curcas) by the use of different formation or production pruning. One experiment for each kind of pruning was carried out in the semiarid region of Minas Gerais state, Brazil, with five treatments each. Treatments were related to primary branch pruning heights, and to pruning or elimination of secondary branches. With the formation pruning, it was possible to reduce the harvest period from 120 to 48 days, but always with significant losses in plant yield in the first cycle. Production pruning can concentrate harvest in 90 days and, in some cases, improve plant yield.
Jatropha curcas; harvest; flowering; fruiting
