This study aimed to characterize the production and management of dairy farms in the North of Minas Gerais and to research the relevant problems pointed by cattle breeders. A total of 47 breeders were interviewed and were classified 26 farms producing only milk and 21 producing meat and milk simultaneously. The extensive system (45%) and semi-extensive (46%) were the most frequently related to these farms. The averages of cows in lactation and dairy production were 36.3 animals and 295.26 liters/day, respectively. The natural mating was the most utilized reproductive system. In the herds were used most frequently Gir (42%) and Holstein (35%) bulls and in farms with mist production, the zebu cows were more predominant. The reduced price paid for the milk and the Boophilus microplus infestations were the problems pointed with higher frequency by cattle breeders. During the dry season the forage most utilized was the sugar cane with urea and during the rainy period, continuous grazing was the most common. Acaricides were applied for 93.6% of the farms and only 15 of them have implemented strategic control. Theses results obtained are important to know and to compare the profile of dairy farms in this region, fomenting the search for alternatives to improve the productivity and sustainability of cattle breeders.

This study aimed to identify the similarities among hydrochemical variables describing the groundwater qualities in the Salgado watershed river (Southern Ceará), with the use of multivariate statistical analysis. Also, the groundwater hydrochemistry was investigated and classified using the Piper diagram. The study was developed from secondary data provided by the CPRM (Centro de Estudo Geológico do Brasil, previously Companhia de Pesquisa de Recursos Minerais). The geological formation of the Salgado basin has two aquifer systems, one on sedimentary rock (porous, karst and alluvial) and another on (fractured) crystalline rock. The research was conducted in 24 groundwater wells spread out over the drainage area of the basin, with data having been collected for the last 10 years. The water samples were analyzed for their content of Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl-, CO3, HCO3 -, SO4 2- and CE. Two groups were formed by the use of cluster analysis, and both were independent with respect to their hydrological characteristics, and similar in hydro geological formation. The water quality study showed no temporal interference. The two components explained 78.30% of the total variance of the water quality. According to the Piper diagram, the waters were classified as 55.6% mixed chlorided water and 40% mixed bicarbonate water, in groups 1 and 2 respectively. The hydrochemical characterization of the studied waters implied no limitation to their human consumption.

The bromeliads are hardy plants with exotic beauty, appreciated by consumers worldwide. The species Ananas porteanus Hort ex C. Veitch Koch, in particular, shows great potential for floriculture. These plants acclimate easily to adverse environmental conditions like those found in semi-arid areas. To assess the salinity tolerance of A. porteanus there were two treatments, one without the addition of NaCl (control) and the other with 80 mmol L-1 NaCl. The experiment lasted 90 days and were evaluated in the shoot: shoot dry matter, chloride, sodium and potassium contents, Na + / K + rate, proline content, total soluble carbohydrates, total soluble proteins, total phenols, peroxidase activity, levels of chlorophyll "a" and "b" and membrane damage. Plants of A. porteanus treated with sodium chloride were able to maintain the integrity of the membrane at levels similar to those found in control plants and the maintenance of membrane integrity result in part from increased activity of peroxidase. The increase in proline and protein content also appears to be one of the strategies of this species to cope with damage caused by the excess of NaCl as well as the increase in levels of chlorophyll. Soluble carbohydrates are not used to adjust the osmotic potential in plants subjected to 80 mmol L-1 NaCl. The metabolic changes occurring in plants of A. porteanus treated with sodium chloride led to a new homeostasis that resulted in the plant tolerance to salt stress imposed.

This paper presents the results of a taxonomic study of the family Poaceae held in Parque Nacional Serra de Itabaiana, with the objective of contributing to the knowledge of species richest of the Park. The PARNA Serra de Itabaiana (10 45'15''S and 37 25'15''O) is located in the state of Sergipe and covers an area of 7966 ha which includes three units, the serra do Cajueiro, Comprida and de Itabaiana. Collections were made between April 2006 and April 2008 and deposited in UFP, ASE, MO, and RB. Information on distribution have been raised from herbaria, literature and databases available on the Internet. We identified 40 species in the PARNA classified into 19 genera, the richest of which is Paspalum L., with eight species. Five species had their distribution extended in this work. A key to identify the species is presented, as well as comments on distribution and ecology.

The present study had as objective evaluates the physiologic behavior of different genetic groups of sheep created in the semi-arid paraibano in the dry and rainy times. Forty sheep were used, eight of each genetic group, distributed entirely in a randomized design. There was shift effect, for all the environmental variables and studied physiologic parameters. There were significant interactions of the factors genotypes, time and hour for the parameters, rectal temperature and breathing frequency. With relationship to the Index of tolerance to the heat (ITC) significant effect of the studied factors was not verified. With these results it can be ended that the races Santa Inês, Cariri and the products, resultants of crossings of the animals ½Dorper and ½Damara with sheep without defined race (SRD) they resemble each other in the adaptation aspect to the conditions of the semi-arid.

The objective of this paper was to evaluate the effect of water availability in the initial development of maize, sorghum and millet. The experiment was carried at Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso, Campus Rondonopolis the period from May to June 2010. The design was completely randomized in factorial 3x3, with three water availability (30, 60% field capacity and flooded soil), three grasses (maize, sorghum and millet) and three replications. Soil moisture was maintained by the weight of the experimental plots. The variables were: plant height, dry weight of shoots, leaf number and SPAD. Maize, sorghum and millet gets greater development in water availability of 60% of field capacity, and this condition provides the highest SPAD reading. The sorghum is tolerant to flooding and drought, unlike maize which is sensitive to these conditions and millet that is tolerant to drought only.

An experiment was carried out at Remigio, State of Paraíba, Brazil, to assess the water requirements of yellow passion fruit (Passiflora edulis Sims f. flavicarpa Degener) from transplanting to fruiting irrigated with water without restriction salinity (0.5 dS m-1) and saline (4.5 dS m-1) in substrate with and without biofertilizer, with and without mulch. The experimental design was randomized blocks in factorial design 23, with three replications and three plants in lysimeters with 130 dm3 of substrate. In relation to witnesses, the use of organic raw material and the cover was reduced by 11.2% and 4.5% in water consumption of plants irrigated with water without restriction salinity and saline, respectively. In non-saline water interaction biofertilizer x mulch, plant water consumption to 2.76 mm day-1 in apical vegetative growth, 4.97 mm day-1 in growth and production of side branches and 5.65 mm day-1 on flowering and fruiting. In the periods of growth and production of side branches, flowering and fruiting, the water consumption of witnesses with water without restriction salinity are higher by 18.4% and 7.7%, respectively, of control plants irrigated with saline water. The electrical conductivity of the leached solution is enhanced by the use of saline water and the treatment without mulch. Plants irrigated with saline water present crop coefficients lower than those irrigated with water without restriction salinity.

This paper aimed to collect, to characterize and to estimate the phenotypic divergence of Dimorphandra spp. from different regions of Brazil. Dimorphandra species are sources of rutin, quercetin and rhamnose for pharmaceutical industry. Fruits at mature stage were collected from 21 areas, totaling 84 trees in cities of Minas Gerais, Maranhão and Tocantins states. The following descriptors were used to characterize the collected fruits: mean fruit fresh weight; mean seed fresh weight; fruit length and diameter; length, diameter and thickness of seed; seed color; number of viable and unviable seeds per fruit, and boron content in mesocarpand endocarp. The data were analyzed using a standardized average Euclidian distance matrix. The areas were clustered based on Neighbor Joining algorithm. Phenotypic variability among areas was detected. The clustering of the groups was consistent with geographic region of the collection and the species were separated in different groups. The D. wilsonii Rizz. species was the most divergent considering the three studied species. However, for germplasm conservation, more expeditions to collect samples are needed to increase the effective population number and to ensure an adequate accuracy to assure the occurrence of minimal genetic erosion.

Aiming to evaluate the nodulation and grain yield by cowpea inoculated with rhizobia isolates obtained of soil samples from Brazilian Northeast region, an experiment was carried out in Leonard jars under greenhouse conditions. The experiment was performed on a randomized block design with five replicates and five sampling times, performed at 15, 30, 45, 60 and 75 days after emergence (DAE). Nine rhizobia isolates and the recommended strain (BR 2001) were inoculated on cowpea. Besides, it were used two control treatment: mineral nitrogen (TN, applying 150 mg N plant-1) and an absolute control (T0). Evaluating the number of nodules per plant (NN), nodule dry mass (NDM), plant dry matter (PDM), Accumulated N (Nac), grain dry mass (GDM) and straw dry mass of pods (DMP). Results showed that the NN, NDM, PDM and Nac content increased until 45 DAE. Although variations had been occurred after 60 DAE for these parameters, significant difference was only found for Nac content at 75 DAE. Evaluated parameters (NN, NDM, PDM and Nac) showed a high correlation with GDM. Although no statistical difference had been observed to the strain BR 2001, five of the nine Bradyrhizobia isolates provided GDM production from 1.6 to 2.4 times more than the recommended strain, indicating high potential of use of these isolates as inoculant. However, further experiments are needed, mostly under field conditions to confirm these results.

The matriconditioning of seeds aims to improve the germination of seeds and to homogenize the establishment of seedlings in field. This study aimed to evaluate the physiological quality of cotton seeds immersed in solid matrix Algalita under different moisture and conditioning periods. We used seeds of cultivar Pantion cotton chemically delinted, coated in proportions of 100 g of seeds for 1000 g of Algalita. The treatments consisted of five levels of water used for wetting the matrix (10, 25, 50, 75 and 100 mL) during six conditioning periods (0, 1, 4, 8, 16 and 32 days). The experimental delineation was arranged as completely randomized, in the factorial project 5x6 (water texts x periods of conditioning) with four replications. The resultsindicate that there is a tendency to increase the vigor of seeds when they are stipulated in different levels of humidity in the solid matrix compared with the witness. This behavior happened exactly with the germination of the seeds, with the exception of the treatment of 1,00 mililiter of water.