The fig tree (Ficus carica L.) is becoming one of the most important fruit plants grown in the south and southeast region of the country. The seedlings formation in nursery, compared to those obtained by direct field cut, is being more and more used. The purpose of this work was to study the influence of the cold conditioning form on the survival and establishment of fig seedlings, cv. Roxo de Valinhos. Propagated by cutting, one-year-old seedlings were prepared during the winter season (July) and conserved in cold chambers at 8º C, divided in 11 treatments, in wholly randomized design, containing three replications and 18 cuttings per plot. The treatments had consisted on the kind of conditioning where were used newspaper, plastic bag, sand, sawdust, paraffin, and some combinations of these materials. The permanence time in cold chamber was 120 days. During this period, the endogen contents of aminoacids and proteins were evaluated every 30 days. After this period, the seedlings were planted directly in the field, in ridges spaced 1m and 0,20 m apart between the plants in a completely randomized design with three replications and 14 seedlings per plot. The shoots growing was evaluated up to 8 months from their planting and, at the end, the percentage of sprouted cuttings that were considered as established plants. The survival index reached, on average, 97,09% in the best treatments.
Propagation; cutting; stratification; fig; Ficus carica
