The objective of this study make a characterization of production systems of goat milk in the Cariris Paraiba. Were visited units processing and receiving points of the goat milk in 17 cities and interviewed 540 farmers in the regions of Cariris. The information was obtained through the application of questionnaire consisting of questions relating to ownership, herd management and health and the results were analyzed according to frequency of responses between the regions. There were significant differences (P<0.05) between the western and eastern Cariris with respect to ownership and size of properties and with respect to the species created in the properties of the two regions. The family system of production with low use of technologies and small herds predominates in Cariri. An interaction between race, environment and management should exist for the maximum production is reached. The use of conservation techniques fodder as hay and silage can help standardize production in semi-arid northeast.

The work aimed to evaluate the influence of potassium rates on the yield of yam (Dioscorea cayennensis) and determine your rate for the productivity of commercial tubers. The experiment was conducted at the Federal University of Paraíba, in Areia-PB, in the period from February to December 2010. The experimental design was randomized complete blocks with six treatments comprise the doses of 0; 50; 100; 150; 200 and 250 kg ha-1 of potassium, in four repetitions. Were evaluated the average mass of commercial tubers, productivity of commercial tubers, percentage of tubers classified as first, the leaf content of potassium in the leaves and the maximum rate of economic efficiency. The maximum average mass of commercial tubers was 2.60 kg, obtained at rate of 126 kg ha-1 of potassium. The rate of 189 kg ha-1 of potassium was responsible for maximum productivity commercial of 17.7 ha-1 t of tubers. The maximum percentage of tubers classified as first was 88%, achieved at a rate of 171 kg ha-1 of potassium. The maximum content of potassium in the leaves of yam was 22.3 g kg-1 obtained at a rate of 155 kg ha-1 of potassium. The maximum rate of economic efficiency of potassium for commercial productivity of tubers was de184 kg ha-1.

This research aimed to evaluate the tannins extracted content of Anadenanthera colubrina (Vell.) Brenan var. cebil (Gris..) Alts. bark in aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide, sodium sulfite and hydroxide + sulfite having as comparison the amount extracted in distilled. A total of 25 g of dry sawdust and 3% of chemicals were used with relationship to dry weight of sawdust. To compare the effect of water with one of the other used solutions it was found that the addition of sodium hydroxide, sodium sulfite or hydroxide + sulfite caused an increase in solid total contents (TST) of 60,17%, 28,45% and 60,17%, in condensed tannin contents (TTC) of 34,5%, 20,02% and 18,02% and of no-tannins of 117,34%, 47,3% and 146,6% and a reduction in the Stiasny’s index of 15,62%, 5,53% and 24,51%, respectively. Statistical analyzes showed that the sodium hydroxide solution extracted a larger amount from tannic substances when compared with the water, having the sodium sulfite and the hydroxide + sodium sulfite solutions presented middlemen results. The distilled water extracted a lower solid total content than other solutions, but the extract contained a greater Stiasny’s index than those obtained by other solutions.

This work aimed to evaluate the effect of mechanical injuries caused by impact, abrasion and cut in guavas cv. 'Paluma' under fruit quality during cold storage at 10°C, and at environment temperature. Was to adopt the completely randomized design in a split-plot in time considering as plots, the mechanical injuries and subplots, the storage periods (0, 5, 8, 11, 14 and 17 days) with four replicates of two fruits per experimental unit. The mechanical injuries were induced considering the following criteria: T1, witness, without fruit visible damage; T2, fruits impacts, two impacts per fruit at a height of 85 cm; T3, fruits subjected two cuts, on opposite sides, depth of 2 mm and length 30 mm; T4, fruits subjected to abrasion, area of 10 cm2. Was evaluated the exterior color, the external appearance, the internal appearance, the severity of disease. Injury due to impact, abrasion and cut no influence on in exterior color, external appearance, internal appearance and severity of diseases of guava cv. 'Paluma' during storage for 11 days at 10oC. But, the quality was impaired by mechanical injuries six days after exposure to 30°C.

The cowpea is a plant of great importance for small producers of the Brazilian Northeast, in particular the region of the Vale of Pajeú. The destination of this plant for the production of green beans constitutes an important source of income for family farmers and presents itself as a good alternative for industrial processing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of cultivars of the cowpea for production of green beans in the conditions of Serra Talhada - PE. The experiment was conducted on the campus of Uni- versity Federal Rural of Pernambuco (UFRPE) / Academic Unit of Serra Talhada (UAST) in the period from August to November 2011. We used five developed improved cultivars: BRS-Tucumaque, BRS-Caumé, BRS- Itaim, BRS-Guariba and BRS-Potengi, and three local cultivars: Corujinha, Paulistinha and Sempre-verde. The experimental design was randomized blocks with four replications, where each cultivar was considered a treatment. The characteristics evaluated were: number of days to beginning of flowering (NDIF), plant size (PP), days to maturity of green pods (DMVV), period of production of green pods (PPVV), length of green pods (CVV) number of grains of green pods (NGVV), grain weight of green pods (PGVV), yield of green pods (PRO.VV), productivity of green grains (PRO.GV), index of green grains (IGV). Cultivars BRS-Potengi, BRS- Tucumaque, BRS-Guariba, BRS-Itaim, BRS-Caumé and Paulistinha and showed potential for the production of green beans in Serra Talhada-PE, under irrigated condition.

Aiming at assessing the growth of sweet peppers (Ca psicum annum L.), submitted to different controlling strategies of weeds in the no-trillage and conventional planting systems, an experiment wa s carried out in UFERSA’s experimental orchard in Mossoró-RN. The split-plot scheme was used, which was distribu ted within the experimental design, in randomized block s with four replications. The planting systems (no- trillage and conventional) were assessed in the plots, and t hree weed handling strategies (soil covering with p olyethyl- ene film, with hoeing, and without hoeing) were ass essed in the subplots. Within each subplot, assessm ents were made on 0, 21, 42, 63, 84, 105, 126, and 147 d ays after transplanting (DAT) for the purpose of de termin- ing the following features of the sweet pepper: lea f area, leaf area index, dry mass of leaves, of ste m, of fruits, and the total dry mass per plant, leaf area ratio, leaf weight ratio as well as the rates of absolute and relative growth and of net assimilation. On the 30th and 90t h DAT, the weeds’ density was assessed in the treat ments without hoeing. It was found that the no-trillage s ystem displayed a decrease in the incidence of weed s as com- pared to the conventional planting system. The no-t rillage system decreased the incidence of weeds com pared to the conventional planting systems. The weed inte rference in treatments without hoeing reduced the g rowth of pepper in both systems and the no-trillage with hoeing system showed higher indices than the other manage- ment strategies of plants in both planting systems.

Chicory is a vegetable Amazon unconventional flavor that has attracted the attention of researchers for its great versatility, which makes it a promising vegetable. However, jobs are scarce in the literature on cultivation techniques for the species. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of pruning tassel floral and different spacing, the yield on Amazon chicory. Three different spacings: E1 = 0.15 x 0.15 m, with 44 plants m2, E2 = 0.20 x 0.20 m, with 25 plants m2, and E3 = 0.25 x 0.25 m, with 16 plants m2, with and without pruning floral tassel. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design in a split plot design 3 x 2, with six replications. The characteristics evaluated were: number of leaves, fresh weight and dry weight of shoots, number of tassel floral tassel floral fresh weight, yield (kg m-2), and leaf area index (LAI). The largest production of chicory Amazon was obtained in plants grown at a spacing of 0.25 x 0.25 m subjected to pruning floral tassel. The highest yield for Amazon chicory was obtained in plants grown at a spacing of 0.15 x 0.15 m submitted pruning floral tassel.

This work was carried out with the objective to study the foam-mat drying of Cereusjamacaru pulp fruit with albumen (2%) and “Super Liga Neutra” (2%) with whipping time of 5 min, dried inoven with air circulation at 70; 80, and 90 °C with three different foam thicknesses (0.5; 1.0 and 1.5 cm). The drying curves were fitted with the Page, Henderson and Pabis and Cavalcanti Mata models. Drying time was influenced by the foam thickness and process temperature being the process faster for smaller thickness and higher temperature. The Cavalcanti Mata model presented the best fit of the experimental foam drying kinetics data.

The use of manure as a nutrient source is of fundam ental importance in the restoration and maintenance of soil fertility, especially in semiar id regions. The purpose of this study was to evalua te the nutri- ent release during decomposition of different manur es in the Paraíba semiarid region. The experiment w as con- ducted at the Experimental Field belonging Embrapa, in Patos/PB. The treatments were arranged in block s with split plot with four replications using a factorial arrangement 4 x 2 x 6, referring to four types of manure (donkey, cow, goat and sheep), two forms of deposit ion (surface soil and buried 10 cm deep) and six sa mpling times for assessment (30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 days after the experiment). Were determined the con centra- tions of N, P, K, Ca and Mg. The N in goat and shee p manure were higher than 50% of the donkey and cat tle manure and also showed the highest levels of calciu m and magnesium. The sheep and cattle manure showed the highest levels of phosphorus and potassium, res pectively. The goat and sheep manure showed the hig hest levels of N, Ca and Mg. The release of nutrients fr om manure spread on the soil surface and incubated showed little variation in the initial phase of the experi mental period. Increases in soil water content prov ided higher activity of the microbial community, with more inte nse release of nutrients in the manure treatments were in- cubated in soil.

The soil management system can modify the natural d istribution of the soil attributes and, con- sequently, the variability of the soil aggregation and organic matter content. Thus, the aim of this w ork was to evaluate the aggregate stability and organic matter content spatial distribution on a Haplic Cambisol under sugar cane cultivation in the Southern Amazonas Sta te, Brazil. A 70 x 70 m square mesh, with regular 1 0 me- ters intervals, was designed over the cultivation a rea, resulting in 64 sample points. Soil blocks wit h preserved structure were collected at 0.0-0.2 m depth in orde r to analyze the aggregate stability and organic ma tter con- tent. The data were submitted to the descriptive an d geostatistical analysis. The soil attributes pres ented a spa- tial dependence structure and the greater range was observed for the mean weighted diameter and aggreg ate class <1.00 mm. Also, there is a spatial relation a mong the mean geometric diameter, mean weighted dia meter and aggregate classes (> 2.00 and 2.00-1.00 mm).