A survey was made of the plant species used in popular medicine in the coastal city of Natal, and the rural city of Santa Cruz, both in the northeastern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte. Information on the medicinal properties of the plants was obtained from interviews with local residents performed between February and August, 2005 and between September and December, 2007. In each area, 100 inhabitants filled out standard forms, for a total of 300 interviews. Data was collected on the plant (popular name, part of the plant used, form of use and function) and on the population (age group, sex and schooling). We recorded 57 species distributed into 54 genuses and 34 botanical families. Regardless of schooling level, more than 50% of the respondents reported using plant species for curing a wide assortment of ailments. The most used families in terms of number of species were: Lamiaceae (seven), Euphorbiaceae (four), Myrtaceae (four), Zingiberaceae (three) and Lauraceae (three). Around 49% of the species were common to the three areas studied. The most used plant parts for preparing remedies, which are used mainly for treating respiratory diseases, were the leaves, fruits and roots. Teas are the most common form of dispensing the medicine. A table is presented containing information, especially on the use and function of the species, as described in the interviews.

The castor bean is a demanding culture in fertility of the soil, especially of phosphorus, that is one of the nutrients more limitation the agricultural production. This experiment was carried with the objective of evaluating the answer of the castor bean during her initial development to different phosphorus doses. The used design was it entirely randomized, with five treatments and three repetitions, where the treatments consisted of different phosphorus doses (0, 3, 6, 9, 13 e 15 g planta-1). The plants were collected at 65 days after sowing for evaluation. The evaluated characteristics were: the number of leaves, leaf area, height, stem diameter, matter dries of the aerial part, of the system roots and total. The castor bean showed response to phosphate fertilizer in all characteristics evaluated, presenting consider increasing the parameters of growth. The best results were found with a dose of 9 g planta-1 P.

The research was lead in two experiments with the objective of to identify methods to superation of dormancy in seeds of Leucaena leucocephala, Cunningham variety, and to verify the effect of light and temperatures in germination of this species. In first the seeds were submitted the nine methods to superation of dormancy: immersion in water under ambient temperature during 24, 48 and 72 hours, immersion in hot water under temperatures of 60, 80 and 100oC, immersion in sulfuric acid per 5 and 10 minutes, beyond of the witness. In second experiment, after treatment with sulfuric acid for 10 minutes, the seeds were sowed in tabledoch paper type Germitest and put to germinate under ten combinations: continue light and constant temperature of 20, 25, 30 and 35oC; dark continue and constant temperature of 20, 25, 30 and 35oC; alternated temperature of 20-30 and 25-35, both with fotoperiod of eight hours. Conclusion the specie Leucaena leucocephala presents seeds dormancy, detach-itself the sulfuric acid as efficient method to the superation of dormancy; the seeds of leucena are insensitive to the light and your germination was not influenced by the temperatures useds.

Seed hydration is considered the most important external factor interfering on germination. This study evaluated the tolerance of Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Steud seeds to water and salt stresses during germination. Seed germination was observed in four 100-seed replications, in polyethylene glycol (PEG-6000) or sodium chloride (NaCl) solutions with four osmotic potentials levels (0; -0.5; -1.0 and -2.0 MPa), arranged according to a completely random design, simulating water and salt stresses, respectively, using four replications of 100 seeds. The germination percentage and germination velocity index were estimated. Percentage germination of the control seeds averaged 94%, and reduced to 77.6% and 44.3% in -1.0 MPa NaCl and PEG solutions, respectively. No germination was observed in -2.0 MPa. Germination velocity index showed the same trend. Gliricidia sepium seeds showed less tolerance to water than to salt stress, and in this condition they are not tolerate to osmotic stress up to -0,5 MPa.

An experiment in greenhouse with maize culture was carried through to evaluate the performance of Acithiobacillus inoculated in biofertilizer, with natural fosfato and sulphur. The biofertilizer was used as phosphorus fertilization in one argisoil degraded. The plants had been fertilized with four concentration of the biofertilizer during 50 days in two successive cultive. The soil fertility was evaluated, after the cultive as well as nutrition and development of the plants. The increase in the concentration of P-soluble in soil induced for the fertilization with the biofertilizer occurred in the second cultive. The application of the biofertilizer did not promote acidification of the soil however it increased the sulphur concentration. The rate of application of the biofertilizer for supply of 160 kg of P ha-1 revealed as of better performance in the supply of phosphorus and development of the plant.

The objective was to evaluate the effect the soil chemical characteristics with the application crushed basalt doses soil samples in the Mato Grosso do Sul State. The experiment was installed in a completely randomized design with six treatments, represented by basalt ground doses (0.00, 12.50, 25.00, 37.50, 50.00 and 62.50 g dm-3) and three replications. Samples of 200 cm3 soil each, packed in polyethylene pots were incubated in the laboratory for 90 days with crushed basalt. At the end of the incubation the samples were dried in the air, passed through a sieve with mesh 2 mm opening, homogenized and subjected to chemical analysis of pH, aluminum, calcium, magnesium, potassium end potenciaty acidy. The values base saturation (V%) were calculated by the product of the bases sum per 100 divided by the cation exchange capacity at pH 7.0 (T). Concluded that the pH is shown with the greatest change the lower the power of packing the soil. With the application crushed basalt was very significant increases in the potassium levels. The biggest increases calcium and magnesium in the soils were poor in these nutrients.

To contribute to knowledge about plants of nutritional importance the work aims to study the motion of absorption of nutrients in lettuce in hydroponic system. Set up an experiment in Fazenda Canto Verde, Mossoró, RN, in the design in randomized blocks with four replicates and treatments were made by the six times of sampling: 0, 6, 12, 18, 24 and 30 days after transplanting (DAT). We evaluated the production of fresh and dry weight of shoot, focus and content of macronutrients accumulated over time. The cultivar received 5.12 kg m-2 yield. In terms of concentration of nutrients in the shoot, the nutrients N, P and K showed levels consistent with the literature cited, and the potassium in the nutrient most obviously during the cycle, giving behavior in the concentration over the cycle, so cube. The content of nutrients (mg plant-1) had high value for potassium (641.7 mg plant-1), below normal for phosphorus (31.9 mg plant-1) and according to the literature for nitrogen (295.4 mg plant-1).

The agriculture soil in the semi-arid Brazilian Northeast, it finds, in many areas, degraded by the utilization of not sustainable practice. This work proposed to evaluate the effect of increasing NaCl levels in the soils under Spondias tuberosa plants colonized with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Under greenhouse conditions, Spondias seeds were going placed to germinate in trays with mycorrhizal soil and in trays with soil autoclavado. The germination occurred 15 days after the planting and in the 30th cultivation day, the plants were going transferred to plastic vases with capacity for 2 L of nutritious solution with the next NaCl doses: 0, 100 and 150 mM. They were monitored the transpiration rate and stomatal conductance until the plants introduced toxicity symptoms to the Na+. After the saline stress suspending, they were evaluated the N, P, K, S, Ca, Mg, Na and Cl contents in the drought matter of the aerial part (stem + leaves) and root. It was going observed the reduction in radicular phytomass and aerial in NaCl first-level regarding the control. Stomatal conductance in plants not micorrizadas was equally reduced. In the root, it was observed significant reductions in Ca, K and Mg contents for the mycorrhizal plants and not mycorrhizal. In the leaves, the increase of NaCl dose induced a substantial reduction in the Ca, Mg and N contents and probably it was caused the reduction in the mass drought production.

The objective of the present work was to characterize melon plant accessions collected in the Brazilian Northeast. They were appraised 42 accessions and four you cultivate commercial, in the years of 2006 and 2007, in twoexperiments in randomized blocks with two replications. 24 traits were used, being 1 of the seed, 11 of fruits, 7 inflorescência, 4 of the leaf and 2 of the plant. The accesses belonged to the botanical group Cantalupensis, Momordica, Conomon and not defined group. Great variation was observed among the accessions for all the traits, especially in the fruit descritores. Variation was verified among and within of the studied botanical groups, mainly in the group Cantalupensis. In a general way, the accesses were fruitful, productive, with long fruits of intermediate size the big ones, with low pulp firmness and lower content of soluble solids. The characterization of the accessions with relationship to the fruit traits can aid the improvement programs. Some accessions can be used to increased the fruitful and the productivity of the melon through crossings with elite cultivars.

Plague control is based almost exclusively on application of chemical substances, however these products are toxic to men and animals and cause odd effects on environment quality. In Plague Integrated Management (PIM), the use of selected insecticides and entomopathogenic fungi should be considered as one viable strategy for plague control in agriculture. This work aimed to evaluate, in laboratory, the compatibility of the entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae var. acridum and Metarhizium anisopliae var. anisopliae with the oil of Nim. The addition of the product was made to the potato-dextrose-agar medium still liquid (±45°C), in a way that the final concentration obeyed 50% of the producer's recommendation. After fungi inoculation, the dishes were incubated in a cimatized room at 28°C, photophase of 12 hours and relative humidity of 75±5% for 12 day period. The number of conidia per colonie was counted with a Neubauer chamber. Statistic delineament was entirely in random, with two treatments (PDA with insecticide), and a control group (PDA without insecticide), and 9 repetitions for each treatment. The results showed that the insecticide inhibited conidial production in Metarhizium anisopliae var. anisopliae strains when compared to the control group. The diameter of Metarhizium anisopliae var. acridum colonies suffered significative reduction in its size, compared to control. The tested insecticide, in the concentration and formulation used, presented compatibility with the tested strains.