This work was carried out with the objective of evaluating the effect of the drought and the application of water of different levels of salinity in the development of five years old "Brazilian Tall" coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) cultivated under field conditions. The experiment was conducted at the Itaporanga Experimental Station in the State of Sergipe located in Northeast of Brazil. The experimental design consisted of randomized blocks (4) with 4 treatments and each repetition constituted of 12 plants. The applied treatments were: T0 - not irrigated; T1 - application of 40 L per plant of fresh water at intervals of 3 days; T2 and T3 - application of saline water containing 7.5 and 15.0 g L-1 of total salts. The following variables were analyzed: number of living leaves, number of dead leaves, the percentage survival of plants at the end of the experiment, the leaf water potential and the stomatal conductance. The analysis of the data showed that the treatments T0 and T3 affected significantly the number of living leaves, but the variable stomatal conductance in the dry period was affected by all the treatments, which points out the inadequacy of the amount of water applied. At the end of the experiment, the survival percentage was of 83% for T1, 81% for T2, 79% for T3 and 58% for T0. The results permit to conclude that water containing up to 15 g L-1 salts during dry season is essential to avoid the loss of young plants.
Cocos nucifera L.; salinity; stomatal conductance; water stress; water relations
