Espaçamento e densidade de ramos ortotrópicos de cafeeiro conilon: biometria e produtividade

Abstract

The objective of this study is to evaluate the influence of spacing and density of orthotropic branches on growth, production and sensory quality of Coffea canephora. The experiment was conducted in the experimental area of Fazenda Bananal do Norte (Incaper), in Pacotuba, district of Cachoeiro de Itapemirim-ES, using randomized block design with four replicates per variant, composed of nine clones of the cultivar “Diamante ES 8112”, the experimental plot. The scheme was developed in a split plot, with the plots composed of five spacings in the coffea planting line in meters (0.5; 0.75; 1; 1.25 and 1.5), and five combinations of the number of orthotropic branches per plant. (2, 3, 4, 5, 6). The collected data were submitted to analysis of variance and to the Scott-Knott cluster analysis method for grouping means, using the program Rbio. No significant difference in the parameters studied was detected in the interaction between spacing and number of orthotropic branches showed. When the sources of variation were evaluated separately, the spacing provided significant differences in plant height, orthotropic stem diameter, number of plagiotropic branches, leaf area of plagiotropic branches, chlorophyll index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), length of plagiotropic branches, diameter of plagiotropic branches, number of rosettes, number of nodes, number of fruits per plagiotropic branches, internode length of plagiotropic branches, number of fruits per rosette, and yield. The source of variation “number of orthotropic branches” interfered significantly with the following characteristics: height of canopy, orthotropic stem diameter, number of plagiotropic branches, leaf area of plagiotropic branches, length of plagiotropic branches, diameter of plagiotropic branches, number of rosettes, and number of nodes. It is important to evaluate new crops, in order to verify if there will be no change in the behavior of the plants over time and during more productive cycles, considering the possibility of an interaction between the two sources of variation.