Cultivation of Cactus Pear (Opuntia stricta Haw) Under Biofertilization in the Climatic Conditions Observed in the Jaguaribana Region (Semi-arid Region of the State of Ceará)

Abstract

It presents the results of an experiment of cultivation of Palma Forrageira Orelha de Elefante (Opuntia stricta Haw) in the climatic conditions observed in the Jaguaribana region, semi-arid region of the State of Ceará. The experiment was installed in an area of 480.0 m² (0.048 ha) in the Riachão Community, located in the rural area of the municipality of Jaguaribe-CE (5°47'15” S e 38°32'29” W), consisting of twenty plots distributed in randomized blocks with the use of bovine manure biofertilizer in five different treatments, control plot (without the use of biofertilizer) and four doses ranging from 0.5 to 2.0 L, with four applications from the fortieth day of planting with intervals of fifteen days until the hundred days of planting. The results showed that four of the evaluated variables presented a positive statistical correlation between the application of the biofertilizer and the development of the plants, and that the variables length, width and thickness of the cladodes, obtained the best results with the application of doses of 2.0 L, obtaining average productivity of 22.27 cm, 16.47 cm, and 0.87 cm, respectively. Thus, it was concluded that the cultivation of this crop, with the use of bovine manure biofertilizer, can help in the creation of herds in the region and mitigate the negative effects caused by the lack of pasture in dry periods, which are consequences of the climatic variability observed in the region.

Keywords
Opuntia sp.; semi-arid; climate variability