The objective of this study was to evaluate the utilization effects of two native cacti named mandacaru (Cereus jamacaru DC.) and xiquexique [Pilosocereus gounellei (A. Weber ex K. Schum.) Bly ex Rowl.] associated with sabiá (Mimosa caesalpiniifolia Benth.) and flor de seda (Calotropis procera (Ait.) R.Br.) about the nutrient intake, daily weight gain, and feed conversion in sheep feedlot. Twenty Morada Nova male hair sheep with an average weight of 15.40, were allocated in a randomized block design, with four treatments and five replicates. The experimental treatments consisted of four diets (30% native cacti + 30% shrub hay + 40% concentrate, on dry matter basis): T1- xiquexique + sabiá hay; T2- xiquexique + flor de seda hay; T3- mandacaru + sabiá hay e T4- mandacaru + flor-de-seda hay. The concentrate consisted of 100.0% algaroba (Prosopis juliflora (Sw) DC) pods. No significant difference was observed for daily weight gain which averaged 88.77 g, and also for voluntary intakes of dry matter, organic matter, ether extract, total carbohydrates, nonfiber carbohydrates, total digestible nutrients and digestible energy in relation to g/day, %BW and g/kg0.75. Significant differences were observed for intake of water in g/day.

This work deals with the survey of the family Acanthaceae in the region of Xingó, in the States of Alagoas and Sergipe. Five species belonging to three genera were found: Anisacanthus trilobus Lindau, Justicia aequilabris (Nees) Lindau, Ruellia asperula (Mart. ex Nees) Lindau, R. bahiensis (Ness) Morong and R. paniculata L. Descriptions, illustrations, comments about geographic distribution and key to the recognition of the taxa are provided.

The callus culture facilitates the study of factors involved in somatic embryogenesis, technique that allows the production of embryos in vitro from somatic tissue, making the propagation possible of elite plants and constituting an important tool in breeding programs. The objective was to analyze the influence of growth regulators on the formation of callus on cotton cultivars BRS Araripe and BRS Seridó. In the Laboratory of Tissue Culture of Embrapa Algodão, for the induction and proliferation of callus, hypocotyledonary segments were cultured on MS medium supplemented with phytoregulators NAA, KIN and 2,4-D. For the induction of embryogenic callus, it was used redifferentiation medium, with no phytoregulators. Data were analyzed according to the nonparametric chi-square test, being verified high number of potentially embryogenic callus, with a friable consistence and cream-greenish coloration. In the treatment with addition of NAA and KIN was observed the formation of embryogenic callus of BRS Seridó. The dependence of the genotype is a major problem for the low frequency of somatic embryogenesis in cotton that has been achieved in a few cultivars; it is necessary to study in other varieties for the definition of appropriate protocols in this process.

Mycorrhizal fungi has been shown to affect some species of parasitic nematodes, in many cases reducing oviposition and the number of galls on the root system of infected plants. In order to evaluate the biocontrol potential of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to reduce the infectivity of Meloidogyne incognita in tomato plants, an experiment was conducted with a randomized block design with eight replications in a factorial with thefollowing treatments: with and without M . incognita, with presence and absence of fungal species Glomus clarum Nicolson & Schenck, Gigaspora albida Schanck & amp; Smith and Acaulospora scrobiculata Trappe. The fungus G. clarum significantly reduced the gall index (46.4%) and the number of egg mass (78.8%) of the nematode on tomato seedlings. The percentage of root colonization is not in itself an indicator of efficiency in controlling fungal infectivity of M. incognita in tomato plants, since A. scrobiculata exhibited a high degree of colonization (77.6%) and was not effective in controlling nematode reproduction. The species of mycorrhizal fungi differ in efficiency in reducing the infectivity of M. incognita in tomato seedlings.

In this work, the aim was to evaluate the performance of Irrigameter in the management of the irrigation water, led in the culture of the bean plant, comparatively to the use of the methods standard of stove, tensiometers, Bouyoucos, automatic meteorological station and pan Class A. Irrigameter was adjusted to the soil characteristics, culture of the bean and irrigation equipment to confection the management ruler. For direct estimation of the evapotranspiration of the culture of the bean plant in your development stadiums, Irrigameter operated inside with heights of the levels of water of the evaporatório same to 2, 3 and 5 cm, corresponding to the stadiums of initial development, vegetative development and flowering, respectively. The humidity obtained by the standard method of stove it was adopted as reference in the comparisons of the irrigation depth. Irrigameter can be used in the management of the irrigation to determine the consumption of water directly for a culture, in any development stadium; the methods that estimate the evapotranspiration of the culture overestimated the irrigation depth recommended by the standard method of stove, happening behavior contrary with the ones that determines the current humidity of the soil.

Two main floristics groups of the family exist in the Caatinga with different composition happening in two types of substrata: (1) in areas of sedimentary soil (2) in derived areas of the crystalline embasement. Due to the importance of Leguminosae in the biome, an inventory floristic of a defined area was accomplished by the Ministry of the Environment as priority for researches you inform in the Caatinga of the Municipal district of Mirandiba and an analysis of similarity of the flora with the one of other areas of the Brazilian Northeast. Trips were accomplished in the period of March from 2006 to July of 2007 for collection of botanical material. The floristics relationships were appraised for the analysis of UPGMA and PCO starting from the indexes of similarity of Sørensen. 75 species were registered distributed in 39 genera representing 25% of the leguminous mentioned already for the Caatinga. Fence 25% is considered endemic of the Caatinga. The similarity analysis showed the formation of two different groups: The group [A] with similarity of 20% it was established for the Caatinga on sandy soils. The group [B] with similarity of 27% it included the Caatinga on derived soils of the Pre-Cambrian crystalline embasement. Comparing the analyses obtained by the methods UPGMA and PCO, it was verified that the formation of the group [A] and their subgroups were common to the two methods. Already the formation of the group [B] it was not very clear in PCO.

The experiment was done in the experimental farm NUPEARIDO belonging to the Federal University of Campina Grande, Patos, Paraiba, Brazil. The objective of the research was to evaluate the hematological parameters as well as the adaptation degree of goats F1 (Boer x SRD) created in semi-intensive regime and submitted at different levels of concentrated supplementation in the area or the semi-arid Paraibano. 24 animals were used F1 (Boer x SRD), distributed in a delineation entirely randomized with four levels supplementation (0.0; 0.5; 1.0; and 1.5 % of PV in MS) and 6 repetitions. It was evaluated the environmental and hematological parameters aiming at to verify the degree of tolerance of the animals to the atmosphere. In the environmental parameters it was observed that there was significant effect of shifts (P < 0.05) with elevation of the temperatures during the afternoon. Already in the hematological parameters, there was not significant difference among the treatments. It was concluded that the different supplementation levels don't exercise significant effect on the hematological parameters of goats resultants of the crossing of the Boer race and SRD in the area of the semi-arid Paraibano and that the animals demonstrate high capacity of tolerance to the climatic conditions of that area for they maintain the normal sanguine representatives in agreement with the patterns for the species.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the behavior of Jatropha curcas L. when submitted to crescent levels of salinity of irrigation water on the initial growth stage. For this, was collected, from native plants, seeds of two cities, Nova Porteirinha, MG and Tianguá, CE. The experiment was developed in the Campus of Universidade Federal Rural do Semiárido (UFERSA), Mossoró, RN, in the period of March to May of 2010. The treatments were installed in completely randomized design, in factorial 2 x 6 (seeds from two cities) and six levels of electrical conductivity of irrigation water (0.5; 1.5; 2.5; 3.5; 4.5 e 5.5 dS m-1), with four repetitions, being each plot composed by one plant cultivated in a plastic vase, with capacity for eight pounds. Thirty days after sowing, was evaluated plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves, foliar area and weight of dry matter of aerial part of plant. The analysis of results allowed to conclude that there are differences between seeds of Jatropha curcas L. in relation to the tolerance to the salinity; and that proceeding from Tianguá, CE, showed more tolerant to salinity, in reason of larger values of foliar area and plant height.

The accelerated process of environmental degradation in the São Francisco Drainage Basin (BHSF) has generated a high demand for seeds destined to the production of plant propagules. However there is no information about the commercial value of the diaspores of forest species which occur in the BHSF. The objective of this study is to propose a system to evaluate the worthiness of the kilogram of seeds for 22 plant species of the Caatinga, based in the following parameters: geographic distribution, endemism, level of threat, functional group, processing, collection effort, classification of seeds and number of seeds per kilogram. Field studies were conducted in five municipalities of the the region of the central valley of the São Francisco River and on five islands located in the main channel of the São Francisco River, from August 2007 to September 2008. The prices calculated using our system varied from R$ 10.00 for Syagrus coronata Mart. Becc. (Arecaceae) and R$ 44.15 for Handroanthus spongiosus (Rizzini) S.O.Grose (Bignoniaceae). From a 50% cut percentage in a cluster multivariate analysis we identified the occurrence of three groups: a group with seeds of lesser commercial value (average value of R$ 18.80.Kg-1), a second group with intermediate commercial value (R$ 28.21.Kg-1) and a third group with seeds of higher commercial value (R$ 32.85.Kg-1). We hope that this study will contribute to the process of conservation and ecological restoration of Caatinga, and also to the improvement of the socio-economic conditions of the local population from the commercialization of these seeds.

The Diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), is one of the main plague-insect specie of Brassicaceae plants in Brazil and all over the world. The resistant genotypes use to its control is a promising alternative. This work aimed evaluates the eggs distribution along the plant, the adults' density per plant, and determine the cauliflower genotypes effect in the P. xylostella oviposition. The experiment was carried out at FCAV/UNESP - Jaboticabal Campus Phytossanity Department (Departamento de Fitossanidade). It was evaluated the eggs distribution, the P. xylostella adults density effect using Sharon hybrid, and tests with or without choose choice to determine the P. xylostella nonpreference in the Teresópolis Gigante, Verona, Barcelona, Sharon, Silver Streak, and Piracicaba Precoce genotypes. It is possible conclude that P. xylostella has higher willingness to oviposits in the stem than in the basal leaves. The three couple density of P. xylostella per plant is the best to discriminate cauliflower genotypes regarding the resistance grade to nonpreference choose choice to oviposition. During the P. xylostella oviposition preference tests with choose choice, the genotypes Sharon, Piracicaba Precoce, Barcelona, Verona e Teresópolis Gigante are less desirable to oviposition; while during the no choose choice tests the genotypes did not differ among them.