The current study aimed to assess adaptability and stability of corn hybrids regarding grain yields when sown in three different seasons in the Brazilian cerrado. The research was carried out at the Experimental Farm of the IF Goiano, campus in Ceres - GO. Pre - sowing fertilization was made with 20 kg ha - 1 of nitrogen, 150 kg ha - 1 of phosphorus and 80 kg ha - 1 of potassium (04 - 30 - 16 formulation). Data were analyzed in a random block experimental design. We assessed tem corn hybrids (Truck, Fórmula, P30F53, P3646H, P30F35H, AGN 30A77H, AGN 30A37H, AG 8088PRO, DKB 390 and DKB Bi9440) in three sowing seasons (Nov. 18, 2011; Jan. 31, 2012 and Feb. 20, 2012) with three replications. Harvests were held on Apr. 4, 2012; Jun. 10, 2012 and Jul. 1, 2012. Each hybrid were assessed on yielding; and a graphical analysis was made to contrast hybrids and sowing seasons regarding stability and adaptability. Results showed a significant effect of the interaction between hybrids and sowing times. Therefore, we may state that the best hybrid in an environment would not be necessarily good in another. Thereby, we can infer that drought and corn genetic variability have diverse behaviors in each season. Over the two - dimensional graphics generated by GGE Biplot method, we observed an increased adaptability of AGN 30A77H when sown on Nov. 18, 2011 and on Jan. 31, 2012, followed by Fórmula; however, for P30F35H, it was on Feb. 20, 2012.

The knowledge about genetic diversity of jatropha crop is important for genetic conservation resources and breeding of this species. The aim of this study was to evaluate the genetic diversity and performance of jatropha clones through morphological characterization to selection of clonal varieties for biofuels production. The clones were obtained through shoot cuttings from previous selection in a population of half - sibs progenies. The morphoagronomic analyses of clones was carried out at 180 days after transplantation and were evaluated plant height, stem diameter, number of primary branches and number of secondary branches, number of bunches and number of fruits per plant. Evaluating clones performance, significant results were found for the number of secondary branches. About analysis of genetic diversity, the measures of dissimilarity genetic varied from 0.62 to 13.11, this way, the UFRBPR14 and UFRBPR15 clones were more divergent. The Tocher method was efficient to verify formation of four groups. The characteristics that most contributed to the divergence among clones were branches number, height and number of bunches, and, stem diameter had lower contribution. The jatropha clones differed only in the secondary branches number and multivariate analysis showed divergence among the jatropha clones with formation of four groups. Also, branches number, plant height and number of bunches were characteristic that contributed to genetic divergence.

Banana is one of the most consumed fruits in the world, which is grown in most tropical countries. The objective of this work was to evaluate the main attributes of soil fertility in a banana crop under two cover crops and two root development locations. The work was conducted in Curaçá, BA, Brazil, between October 2011 and May 2013, using a randomized block design in split plot with five repetitions. Two cover crops were assessed in the plots, the cover 1 consisting of Pueraria phaseoloides, and the cover 2 consisting of a crop mix with Sorghum bicolor, Ricinus communis L., Canavalia ensiformis, Mucuna aterrima and Zea mays, and two soil sampling locations in the subplots, between plants in the banana rows (location 1) and between the banana rows (location 2). There were significant and independent effects for the cover crop and sampling location factors for the variables organic matter, Ca and P, and significant effects for the interaction between cover crops and sampling locations for the variables potassium, magnesium and total exchangeable bases. The cover crop mix and the between-row location presented the highest organic matter content. Potassium was the nutrient with the highest negative variation from the initial content and its leaf content was below the reference value, however not reducing the crop yield. The banana crop associated with crop cover using the crop mix provided greater availability of nutrients in the soil compared to the coverage with tropical kudzu.

Weed control is essential to reduce or eliminate the interference of weeds on crops. Chemical control with the application of herbicides consists of the most used method, with this aim in grain producing areas. Information about the selectivity of herbicides to C. spectabilis (showy crotalaria) are scarce, which are critical for the management of this species as a crop. One field experiment was performed to evaluate the selectivity of herbicides applied in post - emergence of showy crotalaria. The herbicides bentazon (720 and 576 g ha - 1 ), imazethapyr (106 and 79.5 g ha - 1 ), pyrithiobac - sodium (84 g ha - 1 ), flumiclorac (60 g ha - 1 ), flumiclorac in sequential application (30 / 30 g ha - 1 ), imazethapyr + bentazon (106 + 480 g ha - 1 ), and clethodim + quizalofop (96 + 100 g ha - 1 ) were applied in plants with four true leaves, also using a control without herbicide application. Pyrithiobac - sodium and flumiclorac isolated and the tankmix of imazethapyr + bentazon provided greater injuries to showy crotalaria, also affecting the final plant height. Pyrithiobac - sodium (84 g ha - 1 ) was not selective to showy crotalaria. The herbicides imazethapyr (79.5 g ha - 1 ), flumiclorac (sequential application), and bentazon (576 g ha - 1 ), despite the association between clethodim + quizalofop, can be used for weed management in showy crotalaria crop.

Physalis peruviana L. is a perennial plant, but commonly referred as annual in commercial crops. The cultivation of this species might be successful in Brazilian subtropical areas with an adequate and planned management. The objective of the present study was to quantify the production of Physalis peruviana L. with or without plastic covering over plant canopies, using two planting densities, managing the number of stems, and pruning side stems. This study was divided in two experiments; the first experiment evaluated the effect of spacing between each plant and the use of plastic covering in fruit production. The second experiment investigated the effect of the number of productive stems and of pruning in fruit production. The experimental design used for both experiments was randomized blocks, in 2 x 2 factorial scheme, which contained 6 blocks and 10 plants per plot. The following were analyzed for both experiments: production variables, estimated production, number of fruits per plant, mean fruit mass, mean fruit length and diameter, and chlorophyll relative index. Plastic covering and number of stems did not influence fruit production. The 3.0 x 0.5 m spacing without pruning side stems provided a larger production.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the production components of cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata L. Walp) subjected to irrigation with brackish water and different leaching fractions. The experiment was conducted in a lysimeter system of the Department of Agricultural Engineering of the Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Recife campus. The treatments, consisting of two water salinity levels (ECw) (1.2 and 3.3 dS m - 1 ) and five leaching fractions (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20%), were evaluated using a completely randomized design in a 2x5 factorial arrangement with four replications. The variables evaluated were: number of pods per plant, 100 - grain weight, number of grains per pod, grain and shoot dry weight, grain yield and harvest index. The soil salinity increased with increasing salinity of the water used for irrigation, and reduced with increasing leaching fraction. The salinity of the water used for irrigation influenced only the variables number of pods per plant and grain yield. The estimated leaching fractions of 9.1% and 9.6% inhibited the damage caused by salinity on the number of pods per plant and grain yield, respectively. Therefore, the production of V. unguiculata irrigated with brackish water, leaching salts from the plant root environment, is possible under the conditions evaluated.

The Rhyzopertha dominica F. (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) is a primary pest of stored grains in many regions of the world. In this work we evaluated the fumigant activity of essential oils of Ocimum basilicum L., Citrus aurantium L., Mentha spicata L. and Croton pulegiodorus Baill on adult R. dominica in stored maize. Tests were conducted to determine lethals concentrations (CL50 and CL100) and mortality (fumigation).The fumigation test was done in containers made of glass containing 10 individuals of R. dominica, where essential oils were applied at different concentrations: O. basilicum and M. spicata (5, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 40μL/L of air), C. aurantium (10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60μL/L of air) and C. pulegiodorus (0, 20, 30, 50, 70 and 90μL/L of air). After 48 hours of exposure to the oils the percentage of insect mortality was evaluated. According to LC50 and LC100 the toxicity of essential oils decreased in the following order: O. basilicum> M. spicata> C. pulegiodorus> C. aurantium. The essential oil of O. basilicum exhibited strong fumigant toxicity against R. dominica adults, with a LC50 value of 17.67 μL/L air and LC100 value of 27.15 μL/ L air. The C. aurantium essential oil required higher concentrations than O. basilicum, M. spicata and C. pulegiodorus to kill insects. However, all oils evaluated presented fumigating property to promote the control of R. dominica and demonstrated potential use in the management of this coleoptera.

The squamous cells carcinoma (SCC), also known as epidermoid carcinoma, is a malign neoplasia of the squamous layer of the skin’s epidermis, very common in bovines of tropical countries such as Brazil, due to the chronic exposure of animals to ultraviolet radiation. The objective of this work was to describe SCC cases in sheep ( Ovis aries ), because it is known that this disease is rare in this species. A standard animal of approximately six years old was assisted in the municipality of Rio Branco, State of Acre, in Brazil, presenting cachectic state and multifocal tumors. Despite the rarity of this neoplasia in sheep, it is important to use preventive measures, such as: avoiding acquisition of depigmented animals, with absent or sparse fur coverage and, mainly avoiding prolonged exposure to ultraviolet lights, which could cause the appearance of this morbid disease.

Evaluation of root morphology and kinetic parameters assist in the characterization of genotypes in nutrient uptake efficiency. This study characterized Australian cedar clones concerning their nutrient uptake capacity at the seedling stage through root morphology and the kinetics of P, K, Ca, and Mg uptake. The experiment was conducted using a nutrient solution in a greenhouse and growth chamber. Four Australian cedar clones (HE, XF, XD, and XE), provided by Bela Forest View ( Empresa Florestal Bela Vista ), were tested using a completely randomized design with five repetitions, totaling 20 experimental plots. The length, volume, surface area, average diameter, and root length per diameter class, as well as the uptake parameters V max , K m , C min , and the estimated inflow of P, K, Ca, and Mg, were determined. The root morphological characteristics varied between Australian cedar clones; clone XD exhibited the largest root system development. The uptake efficiency of P, K, Ca, and Mg varied between cedar Australian clones. When availability differed, clones XE and XF exhibited greater plasticity in the uptake of P and K respectively, and similar results were found for clone HE in the uptake of Ca and Mg.

Goat and sheep production in the semi-arid northeast of Brazil has shown great economic potential. However, health problems can compromise the productivity of these animals. Given the scarcity of studies about the occurrence of these diseases, the aim of the present study was to analyze the serological diagnosis of anti-Brucella and anti-lentivirus antibodies among small ruminants in municipalities located in the Brazilian states of Bahia and Pernambuco. The samples were collected from local slaughterhouses and dairy farms. In total, 997 serum samples from animals in slaughterhouses and dairy herds were collected. In order to diagnose the caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (CAEV), the samples underwent agarose gel immunodiffusion (AGID) testing. The buffered acidified antigen test (goats) and agarose gel immunodiffusion test (sheep) were used to detect anti-Brucella abortus and B. ovis antibodies following the methodology recommended by the Institute of Technology of Paraná (TECPAR). With anti-CAEV antibodies, seropositivity rates of 4.1% and 2.2% were recorded for animals from the slaughterhouses and dairy farms, respectively. None of the animals (goats or sheep) were positive for anti-B. abortus antibodies. With B. ovis, a seropositivity rate of 6.5% (n = 13) was recorded among the 199 sheep serum samples. Results of the present study confirmed the presence of the CAE virus in the meat and dairy herds studied, although the prevalence was low. Natural infection by B. abortus did not occur in the goat and sheep herds assessed. Seropositivity for B. ovis was confirmed, although prevalence was low. Direct tests are required to diagnose ovine brucellosis.