Filme de partícula à base de cálcio nos aspectos ecofisiológicos e morfoagronômicos da batata-doce

Abstract

Family Farming is mainly responsible for the production of vegetables, especially for domestic markets. In order to promote the improvement of production conditions, some alternatives are viable, such as few financial resources, to make it possible to achieve food security and the job availability, as well as income. Horticulture is one of most explored fields by Family Farming due to the enabling of expressive results and the creation of jobs in small areas. Among the main cultivated vegetables is sweet potato. This tuberous root is a tropical and subtropical vegetable, with a short production cycle (3 to 5 months), easy to grow, with relatively low production cost and high biomass production capacity. However, the short of water can be a key factor in its production and productivity, depite this vegetable being very tolerant to low acces to water. Because of its value, water has become the target of several studies regarding its shortage and because of its association with extreme temperatures and high irradiance, which significantly and increasingly affects the productivity and quality of products. In this context, the foliar application of particle film, a chemically inert mineral that reflects ultraviolet and infrared radiation, as well as, in part, photosynthetically active radiation, allows the reduction in the photoinhibition in leaves and, thus, becoming more efficient in the use of water. Therefore, this dissertation aimed to evaluate the application of different concentrations of particle film (CaO) in the ecophysiological and morpho-agronomic parameters in sweet potatoes in the plantation. The experiment was carried out at the Rural Campus of the Federal University of Sergipe and concentrations of particulate film (5%, 10 and 15% CaO) and water were applied as control. The ecophysiological parameters were evaluated, such as chlorophyll content, gas exchange and chlorophyll fluorescence a; morpho-agronomic parameters, such as aspects of tuberous roots, aerial part of the plant and productivity; and post-harvest, such as color, firmness, solutable solids, pH, titratable acidity. The results indicated that the use of particle film increased the efficiency of the photosynthetic system of sweet potato plants and consequently the efficiency of water usage, increasing its productivity by up to 62%. Consequently, this technology becomes a viable alternative for the management of sweet potatoes by reducing the stress that the plant can suffer in the plantation and increase its productivity generating more income to producers.