ABSTRACT Peppers and bell peppers (Capsicum spp.) are vegetables that have wide genetic variability, as well as a wide range of applications. Studies on genetic diversity help to understand the existing variability and the conservation of genetic resources, allowing breeders to select superior genotypes that meet the needs of breeding programmes. This study aimed to evaluate the genetic diversity among 15 Capsicum genotypes based on morpho-agronomic descriptors and through the Ward-MLM (Modified Location Model) procedure, as well as to indicate the most promising genotypes for breeding programmes. The research was conducted in an experimental area using a randomized block design, with three replications, using nine qualitative descriptors and ten quantitative descriptors. Analysis of variance was performed, and means were subsequently grouped by Scott-Knott’s method. There was a significant difference between genotypes for all traits evaluated, making it possible to select promising genotypes. According to the Scott-Knott grouping test, the number of seeds per fruit had the largest number of groups, with eight distinct groups, while plant height had only two groups. The genotypes GEN18 and GEN21 had the highest average values for fruit wall thickness and thus are indicated for the preparation of sauces. The genotypes GEN14 and GEN16 were the most promising for use for ornamental purposes. The Ward-MLM method made it possible to differentiate C. annuum L., C. baccatum L., C. chinense Jacq., and C. frutescens L. into different groups, and is thus a useful tool to detect genetic divergence.

ABSTRACT Peppers belong to the family Solanaceae and can be used for several different purposes. The use of morphological descriptors associated with multivariate techniques allows identifying pepper progenies that can be recommended for ornamental purposes. This study aimed to select segregating Capsicum annum progenies based on multivariate analyses. The study was conducted in a plant nursery at the Biotechnology and Plant Breeding Sector of the Center of Agricultural Sciences of the Federal University of Paraíba (CCA/UFPB). Twenty F3 progenies of ornamental peppers were used, namely: UFPB 5, 8, 10, 15, 18, 22, 25, 32, 33, 36, 40, 42, 49, 56, 60, 62, 64, 69, 75, and 77, plus four additional controls consisting of the parents UFPB 77.3 and UFPB137 and two commercial cultivars, Etna and Pirâmide. Seventeen plant and fruit traits were evaluated. The experimental design was completely randomized. The data were subjected to a multivariate analysis of variance. All analyses were performed with the software R, version 3.0.3. The results of the multivariate analysis of variance highlighted significant differences between the populations of ornamental peppers. Singh’s (1981) method made it possible to determine that eleven of the seventeen traits studied contributed with 73.7% of the genetic divergence, whereas six traits contributed with only 21.2%. There is genetic diversity among the evaluated progenies. Progenies 5, 10, 22, 33, 49, and 69 are recommended for selection for having ornamental traits for in-pot cultivation. Selection within these progenies is recommended to continue the breeding program of ornamental peppers for in-pot cultivation.

ABSTRACT Biomass produced in agricultural areas stores energy that can be used, contributing to regional development. Among the widely cultivated agricultural species is oats, destined for the production of not only grains and forage, but also biomass. The objective of this study was to characterize oat biomass in terms of the potential for energy generation considering the genetic and cultivation environment variability. Four field experiments were conducted in the state of Paraná and one in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, with black oat (Avena strigosa) and white oat (Avena sativa) cultivars. At the milky grain stage, plants were collected to quantify the production of shoot biomass and its qualitative variables for energy production and energy potential. Biomass yield varied between cultivars and cultivation sites. The mean higher calorific value was 17.9 MJ Kg-1, varying more between cultivation sites than between cultivars, being inversely proportional to the ash content. The contents of carbon, fixed carbon, volatile materials and nitrogen in the biomass did not vary between oat cultivars. The power generation potential varied widely between cultivars and cultivation sites, from 1557 to 3091 KWh ha-1, influenced mainly by the biomass yield, which overlaps the effects of the variations found in biomass quality. We concluded that oats are a species with high potential for use as an energy product, and the selection of the most productive cultivars regionally is crucial.

ABSTRACT Alternative management measures have been used to reduce nematode population levels in affected areas. In this perspective, the objective was to evaluate the efficiency of nematicides based on fungus and bacterium, associated with poultry litter applied via ground in the management of Pratylenchus brachyurus and Heterodera glycines in soybean and corn crops in succession. The experiment was conducted in the 2018/19 growing season in the municipality of Ipameri– GO (-17°34’55.58”S−48°12’02.35”O) in naturally infested field, arranged in a randomized block design, with 10 treatments and 4 replicates, being: T1- Witness/ control, T2- Poultry litter, T3- P. lilacinum + T. harzianum, T4- B. subtilis + B. licheniformis, T5- P. chlamydosporia, T6- Abamectina, T7- P. lilacinum + T. harzianum + Poultry litter, T8- B. subtilis + B. licheniformis + Poultry litter, T9- P. chlamydosporia + Poultry litter, T10- Abamectina + Poultry litter. The poultry litter was added in the soil 10 days before planting. The plots were composed of 6 lines of 6 m, with a spacing of 0.5 m. In the soybean crop at 45 and 90 days after sowing (DAS), the fresh weight of the roots (MFR), nematological variables and productivity were evaluated. In corn, only nematological variables were evaluated at 60 DAS. The treatments using P. lilacinum + T. harzianum and B. subtillis + B. licheniformes increased the MFR and reduced the number of P. brachyurus and H. glycines at the root. P. chlamydosporia associated with poultry litter increased in productivity in soybean plants.

ABSTRACT Melon is a vegetable of great socioeconomic importance, and its cultivation is carried out under different production systems. The protected cultivation of melon can be carried out in coconut shell fiber, which is a substrate widely used in olericulture, but little information is available regarding its continuous use in more than one cultivation cycle. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the performance of muskmelon hybrids as a function of the reuse of coconut shell fiber with fertigation in a protected environment. The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse from March to July 2008 and designed in randomized blocks in a 2×3 factorial arrangement, with four replications. The factors consisted of two hybrids (‘Bonus 2’ and ‘Fantasy’) and three types of substrate (S1: new coconut shell fiber; S2: coconut shell fiber reused once in sweet pepper cultivation; and S3: coconut shell fiber reused twice, i.e., first in sweet pepper cultivation and then in melon cultivation). Transverse and longitudinal fruit diameter, fruit shape index, transverse and longitudinal locule diameter, locule shape index, peduncle insertion diameter, mesocarp thickness, firmness, skin netting, fresh mass, soluble solids, titratable acidity, pH, and yield were evaluated after harvest. Reusing twice the coconut shell fiber as a substrate did not affect the agronomic and physicochemical characteristics of the hybrids Bonus 2 and Fantasy.

ABSTRACT The germination process of the Annona sylvatica A.St.-Hil becomes difficult because the seeds have physical and physiological numbness. Although, the objective was to evaluate the effect the gibberellic acid can have in overcoming this physiological process. So that, aimed to evaluate the effect of the gibberellic acid in the overcoming dormancy of araticum seeds. Two different projects were developed simultaneously (plants germination in the laboratory and emergence of seedlings in seed). At the laboratory, the experimental design used was completely casualized in factorial scheme 4 x 4. Evaluating the physiological aspect of the germination and vigor. The germination of the seeds presented superior performance when they were immersed in 1200 mg.L-1 of GA3, in 24 h of imbibition, reaching 67% of germination. In the emergence of seedlings in seed, the experimental design used was to randomize blocks in factorial scheme 4 x 5 (four accesses x five periods of immersion). After 110 days, evaluating physiological aspects of emergence and vigor. The emergence varied between 32 to 45% (accesses A1 and A3) in a period of 15 to 24 h (accesses A1 and A3 or A4). High concentration and longer period of soaking in gibberellic acid promote a bigger germination of the araticum seeds. There is a difference between the accesses of the species, necessary to evaluate before being collected, and in the present study the accesses A3 is promising for harvest.

ABSTRACT The sesame crop has great economic potential due to the various possibilities of exploitation, however, there is a lack of information about the chemical control of weeds in the crop, mainly about the application of herbicides in pre-emergence. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the economic viability and efficacy of herbicides applied in pre-emergence for the control of weeds in the sesame crop. The experimental design was in randomized blocks, with four replications. The treatments consisted of seven herbicides (diuron, flumioxazin, oxadiazon, oxyfluorfen, metribuzin, linuron, and S-metolachlor) and a mixture (metribuzin + oxyfluorfen) applied in pre-emergence. The two control treatments were weeded and nonweeded plots. The variables evaluated were percentage of control of the weed community, grain yield, gross and net income, rate of return, and profitability index. The highest productivity value was for weeding, followed by the herbicides diuron and flumioxazin, with 2,000.44 kg ha-1, 1,957.35 kg ha-1;, and 1,933.13 kg ha-1, respectively. The herbicides diuron and flumioxazin obtained the highest net income, in the amounts of R$ 7,831.26 and R$ 7,762.85, respectively. The diuron and flumioxazin applied in pre-emergence showed more than 80% in the control of weeds in the sesame crop, showing efficiency in the control. The use of herbicides applied in pre-emergence to control weeds, mainly diuron and flumioxazin, is as efficient as mechanical control, demonstrating the potential for use and economic viability in relation to mechanical control, which presents a high cost/benefit ratio.

ABSTRACT The work evaluated the potential for discrimination of land use and occupation around reservoirs, using spectral information obtained by multispectral, hyperspectral satellites and images obtained with an ARP (remotely piloted aircraft). The research analyzed the performance of different images classification techniques applied to multispectral and hyperspectral sensors for the detection and differentiation of soil classes around the Paus Brancos and Marengo reservoirs, located in Settlement 25 of Maio. The classes identified based on surveys in campaigns carried out in 2014 and 2015 around the reservoirs were: water, macrophytes, exposed soil, native vegetation, agriculture, thin and ebbing vegetation, in addition to the cloud and cloud shadow targets. The performance of the classifiers applied to the image of the Hyperion sensor was, in general, superior to those obtained in Landsat 8 image, which can be explained by the high spectral resolution of the first, which facilitates the differentiation of targets with similar spectral response. For validation of the supervised classification method of Maximum Likelihood, Landsat 8 (08/24/2015) and Hyperion (08/28/2015) images were used. The results of the application indicated a good performance of the classifier associated with the RGB composition of the chosen Hyperion image (bands R - 51, G - 161, B - 19) in the detection of the classes around this reservoir, producing a Kappa coefficient of 0.83. The availability of data from the Hyperion sensor is very restricted, which hinders the development of continued research, thus the use of images surpassed by RPA is extremely viable.

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to evaluate mango hybrids obtained by open pollination based on the physical and chemical traits of the fruit, and to analyze the genetic diversity among these hybrids to find plants that produce quality fruit both for direct consumption and for industrial processing. The hybrids under study were generated from seeds produced from crosses with unknown genotypes as a result of open pollination. The unknown genotypes were randomly scattered in areas dedicated to growing a Tommy Atkins variety, and plants were obtained from mango seeds generated through sexual propagation. To assess genetic diversity, cluster analysis was carried out, as well as principal component analysis. Two hybrids were most prominent in terms of fruit weight, fruit length, fruit diameter, pulp weight, and pulp yield, with mean values greater than 245 g for pulp weight and 70% for pulp yield. Regarding fiber content in the pulp, six hybrids had a score of "2", that is, moderately fibrous fruit. For acidity and soluble solids content, the hybrids exhibited variations from 0.19 to 1.06% of citric acid and from 13.1 to 20.6 ºBrix, respectively. For peel color, tones ranging from reddish orange to yellow and green were observed. As for pulp color, there was variation from orange to light yellow tones. There was variability among the mango hybrids regarding the fruit traits analyzed, and hybrids that produce fruit that combine traits of economic interest were identified.

ABSTRACT Maize is widely cultivated in Brazil, and nitrogen is a major nutrient for its yield. Azospirillum brasiliense bacteria help in plant nutrient supply; however, maize-Azospirillum symbiosis is not very efficient and requires selection of genotypes with a more efficient association. Multivariate indexes facilitate selection using a single value, and GGE-biplot analysis enables the visualization of the genotype-environment interaction from this value. The present study aimed to select progenies that effectively associate with the bacteria and study the efficiency of progeny selection using a multivariate index observed in the GGE-biplot method. The experiments were conducted in two cities in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. In a simple 16 × 16 lattice, 256 genotypes were evaluated in the presence and absence of diazotrophic bacteria. PH, SL, SD, FI, HGM, SS, and GY were measured for the construction of a selection index. Genotypes exhibited significant genotype–environment interactions for all evaluated traits, allowing their use in the selection index. High-yield genotypes were not those with the highest selection index values. The traits GY, SD, HGM, SS, SL, and PH contributed the most to the construction of the index. The no-till system may have contributed to the weaker response of maize inoculated with Azospirillum brasiliense. Genotype 96 had the highest values of the characteristics used to calculate the GISI, along with the stability between environments.