The aim of this paper was to evaluate the biological aspects of Plutella xylostella and Trichogramma pretiosum in eggs of the F2 generation of P. xylostella under the influence of Bacillus thuringiensis in laboratory conditions. The experiment was conducted in the Laboratório de Biologia and Criação de Insetos of Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias de Jaboticabal - UNESP reen collars contaminated with strains and commercial product based on B. thuringiensis in the laboratory. The eggs obtained from the F2 generation of P. xylostella evaluated the biological parameters of T. pretiosum. It was observed that some biological characteristics of P. xylostella showed changes by the treatment with B. thuringiensis. The viability of the larvae and pupae stages, pupae weight were the biological parameters more influenced by treatments, with values significantly reduced when compared to control. However, the larvae length and pupae stages and sex ratio were similar in all treatments, with no significant biological variations. Thus, this bacterium isolated from this behavior may provide greater exposure of larvae to other natural enemies as well as generation of adults less viable, which makes them potential programs in pest control, since the interaction of the methods of control is one of the main ways to enhance the biological control of insect pests. It was observed sublethal effects on P. xylostella biology, and B. thuringiensis negative influence on the parasitism capacity and emergency of T. pretiosum.

The search for new antimicrobial agents from plants is intense due to the increasing resistance of pathogenic microorganisms to synthetic products. Moreover, the long term use of pesticides cause negative impacts to society and the environment due to pollution caused by chemical waste. The aim of this paper was to evaluate the effect of Lippia sidoides and Piper aduncum oils, carnauba wax and dextrin to control stem-end rot of mango. Fruits of mango cv. Kent were inoculated with suspensions of 106 (conidia/mL) of Lasiodiplodia theobromae or Botryosphaeria dothidea, and after 24 hours there were applied the treatments. The experiment was organized on a completely randomized design with three replications and the experimental unit was composed of a tray containing six fruits. After eight days in cold storage (10 ± 2 º C) the fruits were placed for five days at room temperature (25 ± 2 º C) when were evaluated daily for the disease severity. The best treatments were Lippia sidoides and Piper aduncum oils that showed specificity to control stem-end rot caused by L. theobromae and B. dothidea on mango.

The population growth not only demands further exploration and use of water, but generates different types of wastewater, such as sewage which is dumped directly into watercourses. In this context, the aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the use of wastewater from domestic sources on the growth of plants of physic nut during the third year of production under protected ambient. A randomized block design in a 5 x 2 factorial scheme was used, the factors being five levels of water replacement - WR (0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00 and 1.25 times water consumed by the plant) and two levels of phosphorus (135 and 200 g plant-1 year-1) with four replications. Plants were grown in recipients with a capacity of 200 L and in the beginning of the 3rd year of production (present study) a drastic pruning was performed. The variables plant height, stem diameter; leaf number and leaf area of the physic nut were influenced by the depth of water replacement from 30 days after pruning (DAP). The leaf number and stem diameter were affected by phosphorus dose at 30 and 90 DAP, respectively. The plant height and leaf area were influenced by the interaction (WR x phosphorus dose) at 30, 60 and 90 DAP. The weight of the fruit and water use efficiency of physic nut were affected by the depth of water applied but were not influenced by phosphorus dose.

The paper aimed to examine the equity investment in shrimp production, a typical farm of the western region of Rio Grande do Norte, using the following criteria for project selection: Net present value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), payback and Cost/benefit analysis (C/B). In a complementary manner it has evaluated the likelihood of change in Net Present Value and Internal Rate of Return, through the risk analysis. In the risk analysis input variables (inputs) were considered: the price paid to producers per Kg of shrimp and price of Kg of ration HD-35%, which represents 36.42% of the total cost per production cycle. The selected variables or (outputs) were the Net Present Value at 12% and 6%, and the Internal Rate of Return. The results of investment analysis, without considering price risk were: R$ 214,943.93 NPV 12% NPV 300,819.13 6%, 60% IRR, payback of two years and 1,4 Interface B/C. The survey results indicate that shrimp farming represents for the rural sector of Rio Grande do Norte, a leading alternative investment, considering that the average IRR, considering the risks of price, was 35.21%, ie any other investment would only be desirable, in comparison with investment in shrimp production, if present rate of return higher than 35.21%.

Heteropterys tomentosa A. Juss. belonging to the Malpighiaceae family has its roots extracted and used in the Cerrado of Mato Grosso, mainly as a tonic and aphrodisiac. Evaluation of seedling growth may provide information for growing and selecting plants of the species. In this paper the aim was to evaluate the growth of progenies of H. tomentosa in a greenhouse. 30 progenies were evaluated in a randomized experimental design with three replications of 10 plants per plot. The variables analyzed were height (cm/plant), diameter (mm/plant) and number of leaves/plant. The plants were grown at an average speed of 0.38 cm per day. However, the average speed was higher at 120 days, with about 0.53 cm.day. The diameter increment was much lower in the first 60 days, about 0.01 mm.day, but there was an increase to 0.03 at 100 days, 0.02 mm.day stabilizing again to the end of 150 days. The increase in speed to the number of leaves at 45 days and 105 days was the same (0.13 leaves.ind.day). However, it was between 60 and 90 days after planting that the growth rate was higher (0.26 leaves.ind.day). The highlights were significant associations between fresh weight and dry weight and between length and weight of the plant. It is concluded that the seedlings of H. tomentosa kept in a greenhouse grow up too quickly and can be transplanted to grow efficiently. The selection of individuals for increased root production can be done by those with the greatest number of leaves.

The goal of this present paper was to evaluate the productive performance of feedlot goats fed with wild cassava silage based rations and growing levels of whole cottonseed. Whole cottonseed levels evaluated were: 10.0%; 20.0%; 30.0% and 40.0% of dry matter. Twenty four male goats, non castrated, non defined genotype, weighting 9.4±2.0 kg of body weight were used. Experimental design was a completely randomized with four whole cottonseed levels and six replicates. Increasing whole cottonseed levels was observed higher average daily gain and total weight gain of goats. On the other hand, final body weight and total water intaked were not affected by whole cottonseed levels in rations. Besides, water intake from ration corresponded for the most part of total water intaked daily by animals. Increasing whole cottonseed level until 40% of dry matter for feedlot kids goats may promote higher average daily gain and total weight gain, without affect water intake.

With the purpose to minimize the incidence of stem-end rot, mango, caused by Lasiodiplodia theobromae, Fusicoccum aesculi, and Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, five resistance inductors were tested under field conditions: (T1) absolute control (no treatment); (T2) Fosetyl-AL; (T3) Agromós; (T4) Calcium Phosphite; (T5) Potassium Phosphite: (K30) and (T6) Acibenzolar-S-methyl; which were compared to the control treatment, to the conventional treatment on the farm (T7) compound: Pyraclostrobin; Thiophanate methyl; Azoxystrobin; Difeconazole; Tebuconazole; Thiabendazol; Tetraconazole. The sprayings were performed using a knapsack sprayer in a total of seven applications with 15-day intervals. The statistical design was a randomized block design with seven treatments and four replications, with each plant being considered a repetition, totaling 28 plants. Incidence of post-harvest rot was obtained for 77.9% of the treated fruit. No significant difference between the tested resistance inducers was observed, not even regarding the control. However, the conventional treatment (T7), adopted by the farm, showed a 25% disease incidence only and diverged statistically from the others. Studying the etiology of the rot, high indices of C. gloeosporioides, with 75% incidence, were verified, followed by L. theobromae, F. aesculi, A. niger and Alternaria sp, with incidence of 11%, 5.5%, 2.7% and 1.3%, respectively. Moreover, 4.3% of non-identified micro-organisms were detected.

Agricultural activity changes the soil physical properties, making them unfavorable for plant development. The objective of this study was to evaluate the soil physical properties and total carbon stocks in the layers of 0 to 0.10 and 0.10 to 0.20 m depth, in areas under different management, and compare with the native forest soil. The study was conducted between May and December 2009, at University of Oeste Paulista, Presidente Prudente (SP). The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design with four replicates in a 4x2 factorial, with four soil management systems (no tillage (NT), conventional tillage (CT), pasture and native forest) and two sampling depths (0 to 0.10 and 0.10 to 0.20 m). We evaluated the parameters of soil bulk density, porosity, organic matter content and total carbon stocks in soil. Human intervention through agricultural practices reduces the stock of carbon in soil to levels well below the conditions found in native forest, besides providing the soil physical conditions worse than that of the soil kept under forest.

The inoculation of seeds with the bacterium Azospirillum has been carried out in maize culture and other grasses. The application of growth bio-regulators is another technology whose results in maize culture have yet to become more widespread. Current study evaluates the agronomic effectiveness of seed inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense in maize, associated with the use of the growth regulator Stimulate ®. Triple hybrid maize CD 304 underwent the following treatments: 1 - control without nitrogen and without Azospirillum brasilense; 2 - Treatment without nitrogen but with Azospirillum brasilense; 3 - Treatment without nitrogen but with Azospirillum brasilense + Stimulate ®; 4 - Treatment with 50% of nitrogen dose recommended for maize culture; 5 - Treatment with 50% of nitrogen dose and inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense; 6 - Same as 5 but with Stimulate ®; 7 - Total N recommended; 8 - Total N recommended + Azospirillum brasilense ; 9 - Total N recommended + Azospirillum brasilense + Stimulate ®. The inoculation of maize seeds with Azospirillum brasilense increases plant height and grain yield when compared with rates in control. The use of 50% of N dose in sowing, associated with the inoculation of maize seeds with Azospirillum brasilense at 200 mL ha-1 (mixed to the seeds) and associated with Stimulate ® (in foliar application), is viable.

Secondary metabolite produced in some plants can provoke alterations in the development of other plants or even other organisms. The aim of this paper was to identify possible allelopathic effects and biologic control of Achatina fulica Bowdich with aqueous extracts of Morus rubra L. leaves. For obtaining the aqueous extract, we used previously dried leaves in concentration of 1g 10 mL-1. Five concentrations of each aqueous extract were tested (10, 30, 50, 70 and 100%) and compared to control (0.0%), distilled water. The aqueous extracts of Morus rubra showed up allelopathic potentialities on the seed germination and in the growth of the shoot and the root system of the tested species, considering that the reduction in the germination and initial growth increased with the rising of the aqueous extracts concentrations used and, in the biologic control, only in the final mass of A. fulica. The results indicated the existence of allelopathic effect, but not molluscicide of M. rubra.