The leaf area index is one of the most utilized physiological parameters employed in plant growth analysis, giving support to interpretation of related yield factors. The aim of this work was to develop a mathematical model suited to estimate strawberry leaflet and leaf areas. The experiment was carried out in Atibaia, SP, during the 1995 season, with the cultivar Campinas (IAC-2712), under open and protected field conditions, in a commercial strawberry growing field. The sampling in each experiment was made up of 25 leaves, with 75 leaflets, including different ages and sizes, picked randomly from 25 plants. Areas were estimated through leaflet width and length measurements, taking in to account the leaflet position on the leaf. Results obtained were fitted to linear models. The leaflet width and length mean was concluded as the best way of predicting area compared to single measurements. The whole trifolioate showed a better leaf area predictive ability than did the central leaflet. Leaf area can therefore be estimated by means of its leaflet width and length measurements, representing a conservative sampling method.
Fragaria X ananassa; leaflet area; trifoliolate area
