The experiment was carried out in Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil, to evaluate the production of chicory plants subjected to periods of covering with white polypropylene of 20 g m². The experimental design was a randomized block using a factorial scheme 4x2, with four replications. The treatments consisted of two chicory genotypes (cv. Chicória Crespa, of Isla Seeds, and 'AF-218', of Sakata Seeds) and four cultivation systems: (a) non covering of the plants with polypropylene; (b) covering 15 days after the transplanting (DAT); (c) covering during 30 DAT; (d) and covering during 42 DAT, corresponding to the entire growth period of chicory in the field. Sowing was done in June 2nd 2003 and transplanting in June 27th 2003. The placement of the polypropylene was made directly over the plants, fixing the lateral parts in the external side of the plot. At harvest, evaluation was done by measuring plant height and diameter, number of leaves, and shoot fresh and dry mass. After 42 days with polypropylene covering, genotype 'AF-218' showed higher shoot fresh mass (439 g/plant) when compared to cv. Chicória Crespa (286 g/plant). Shoot height, number of leaves and shoot fresh mass of the two genotypes increased as the periods of polypropylene covering were longer. The use of polypropylene during the whole plant period of post-transplanting promoted precocity of the crop in eight days, besides superior quality, with more tender and clean leaves.
Cichorium endivia; row-cover; non-woven
