Initial aspects of the reproductive phenology of plants from Monteverdia ilicifolia (Mart. ex. Reissek) Biral cultivated with biostimulants

ABSTRACT

The objective of the study was to evaluate the reproductive phenology in a Monteverdia ilicifolia plantation, whose seedlings were produced with Trichoderma spp. and vermicompost, in order to identify the moment when the shift to the adult reproductive stage of the species occurs and possible effects of biostimulants on reproductive development of the species. The seedlings was carried out in tubes of 180 cm³ volume in a greenhouse in November 2015. For the Trichoderma spp. assay, three non-commercial strains (T1 and T2: Trichoderma asperelloides; T10: Trichoderma virens) inoculated in commercial substrate and one treatment without Trichoderma (control) were tested, comprising four treatments with five replications each, totaling 20 plants. For the vermicompost assay, different proportions of vermicompost and non-sterile soil were tested. The percentages of vermicompost evaluated were: 0; 20; 40; 50; 60 and 80% in relation to the non-sterile soil (treatments T0, T20, T40, T50, T60 and T80), being tested ten replications per treatment, totaling 60 plants. The seedlings were transplanted to the field at 330 days, at a spacing of 4.0 m x 3.5 m, constituting two trials, which were evaluated individually. The reproductive phenology of M. ilicifolia was evaluated in 2018, 2019 and 2020, using the presence/absence of flowering and fruiting method, quantified by the activity index (AI), which expresses the percentage of individuals that manifested the events in each sampling. The analyzes were carried out directly and monthly, between the months of August and December of each year. The first reproductive phenology of the species occurred 22 months after planting. The flowering activity index was more intense than the fruiting activity index during the three reproductive periods analyzed, but it is still incipient to infer about the action of biostimulants, in view of the presence of two floral types with characteristics that may have influenced the results found. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the floral typology of each cultivated individual to better understand the reproductive dynamics of the species in the study area and confirm possible effects of biostimulants.

Keywords
Activity index; Espinheira-santa; Vermicompost; Trichoderma