Arno Bernardo Heldwein

Modelos de determinação não-destrutiva da área foliar em girassol

The objective of this study was to obtain and to numerical models to estimate the leaf area in function leaves linear dimension in sunflower. Two experiments were conducted at the experimental area of the Plant Science Department of the Federal University of Santa Maria, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil. Plants of sunflower were collected starting 27 days after emergency (DAE). The disks method was used to determine the leaf area (LA). Leaves were dried in oven at 65°C until constant weight. Linear, quadratic, cubic and power models between leaf area and length or width, and the product (length * width), were fitted. Models that apresented coefficient of determination lower than 0.90 were not selected. The statistic used to evaluate the performance of the models was the root mean square error (RQME). Models that had the best fit were power, quadratic and cubic using blade width as the independent variable. Leaf area in sunflower can be estimated with the power model, which was the most accurate, with width of the leaf.

Estimativa do plastocrono em meloeiro (Cucumis melo L.) cultivado em estufa plástica em diferentes épocas do ano

Muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.) is a high-value horticultural crop. The prediction of node appearance is an important part of simulation models of crops with decumbent growth like muskmelon and other cucurbits. One way to predict node appearance is by using the concept of plastochron, defined as the time interval between the appearance of successive nodes on a stem or vine. Time can be expressed as thermal time, and in this case, the plastochron has units of °C day node-1. Previous studies have demonstrated that the plastochron in muskmelon varies with genotype and planting date. The objective of this study was to estimate the plastochron in muskmelon grown inside a plastic greenhouse at different transplanting dates. Twelve planting dates were performed inside a 10m X 25m greenhouse covered with polyethylene in Santa Maria, RS, Brazil. The HY-MARK hybrid was used. Twelve plants in each planting date were tagged with colored wire. The number of visible nodes (NN) on the main vine of the tagged plants was measured twice a week. Daily degree-days (DDD, °C day) were calculated, with cardinal temperatures for node appearance in muskmelon (10, 34, and 45°C). Accumulated thermal time (TT, °C day) from transplanting was calculated by accumulating DDD. The NN was linearly regressed against TT. The plastochron was estimated by the inverse of the angular coefficient of the linear regression. Plastochron varied among planting dates, from 13.4 to 21.8°C day node-1, with an average of 18.6 (±2.3)°C day node-1. This difference in plastochron values among planting dates may represent several calendar days when NN is used to estimate the date of developmental stages in muskmelon such as flowering of the first male and hermaphrodite flowers.

Tamanho da amostra e método de amostragem para avaliação de características do pimentão em estufa plástica

Information from all plants in a row are usually collected in greenhouse experiments. This increases experimental cost, labor, time and space for collecting data from all plants and fruits. The sample size and sampling method for sweet pepper experiments in greenhouse were determined, during winter-spring of 2000 and summer-fall of 2001. The greenhouse was located at the Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Brazil. The experiment was conducted with ten rows of 23 m length with 72 plants per row. Fresh fruit weight variances were heterogeneous among rows for each cultivation season, between the two seasons. The sample sizes estimated for the winter-spring and summer-fall seasons were, respectively, 56 and 50 plants per row in each crop with 95% of confidence.

Técnicas experimentais para tomateiro tipo salada sob estufas plásticas

An uniformity trial was carried out with tomate plants grown in a plastic greenhouse with an area of 24m x 12m. The total fruit yield of salad tomato cv. Monte Carlo was evaluated during 11 separat harvest. The basic plot was planted with three plants in the same row. The plants were grown in distances of 0.3m in the same row and by 1,0m between rows. All 24 plots were allocated in ten different rows. The results demonstrate that the completely randomized were more adequate with plots smaller than 18 plants in the same row. The yield evaluation in experiments with different traits using a same cultivar in plastic greenhouse should be conducted up to 30% of total yield. This is importam for more experimental precision and budged economy and time. Results showed that the minimal significance difference varies after 30% of the total yield, was harvested for three, nine and eighteen plants in each plot.

Effect of polyethylene mulches on soil temperature and tomato yield in plastic greenhouse

Este experimento foi conduzido para avaliar o efeito da cobertura do solo com polietileno transparente, preto, branco e co-extruzado branco-preto sobre a temperatura do solo e produtividade do tomateiro no interior de uma estufa plastica, em Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. O periodo experimental foi de 21 de agosto a 02 de dezembro de 1994. Observou-se que a temperatura maxima e media diaria do solo foi maior sob polietileno transparente. A amplitude maxima da onda diaria de temperatura do solo foi maior nos materiais opacos em relacao ao transparente. Nao houve diferenca estatistica na produtividade do tomateiro entre os tratamentos, mas a produtividade media foi maior com plasticos opacos do que com o plastico transparente. Entre os plasticos opacos, a maior produtividade foi obtida nos plasticos brancos, que refletem maior fracao da radiacao solar global incidente do que o plastico preto.

Evapotranspiração máxima da cultura de pimentão em estufa plástica em função da radiação solar, da temperatura, da umidade relativa e do déficit de saturação do ar

An experiment was carried out to study the relationship between sweet pepper maximum evapotranspiration (ETm) per unit leaf area index (ETmf) and incident solar radiation (Rge) and net radiation (Rne) outside greenhouse, and with air temperature (tam), air relative humidity (URm) and water vapor pressure deficit (D) inside a greenhouse. ETm was measured by lysimeters. Temperature and relative humidity were registered whereas Rge and Rne were estimated. The Rn e was the variable with largest effect on ETmf determination, followed by D and URm. The air temperature at 15:00 and the daily maximum temperature were variables of larger association with ETmf among the variables with punctual time observations. Rge improved its relationship with ETmf when was analyzed with different t am ranges. The results confirmed Rne and D as the meteorological variables of highest relationship with evapotranspiration in plastic greenhouse grown crops in autumn. However, the degree of adjustment of this relationship for sweet pepper is different from those reported for other crops.

PRODUÇÃO E DISTRIBUIÇÃO DA MATÉRIA SECA DO PEPINO PARA CONSERVA EM DIFERENTES POPULAÇÕES DE PLANTAS

The aim of this work was to determine the effect of plant density on dry matter accumulation and distribution to fruits of pickling cucumber plants. Experiments were carried out inside a polyethylene greenhouse, where plants were grown in densities of 2.00, 2.50, 3.33 and 5.00 plants m-2 in spring 1999, and of 4.00, 5.00, 6.66 and 10.00 plants m-2 in summer-autumn 2000, in order to determine the effect of plant density on dry matter accumulation and partitioning between vegetative parts and fruits. Plants grew in rows and were trained according to the high-wire system. Dry matter accumulation of stem, leaves and fruits was measured weekly. Fruits were harvested daily, the dry matter measured and values were summed together to determine the cumulative week weight. In the first experiment, a positive effect of the higher plant density was observed on dry matter accumulation of shoot and fruits, with a mean fraction of 49.5% allocated to fruits. In the second experiment, this effect was recorded only on the stem and the fraction of dry matter allocated to fruits decreased when plant density changed from four to 10 plants.m-2. Cumulative fruit yield in the first experiment showed a linear response to plant density while in the second experiment no effect of this variable was observed on fruit yield. It was concluded that it is not possible to use a pre-fixed plant density all over the year for the commercial production of pickling cucumber crops.

Soma térmica de algumas fases do ciclo de desenvolvimento da batata (Solanum tuberosum L.)

Thermal time has been used to represent the effect of the air temperature on plants growth and development. Thermal time is a simple method and a better time descriptor than calendar days in plants. The objective of this study was to calculate the thermal time by different calculation methods for different developmental phases (emergency to tuber initiation, from tuber initiation to beginning of senescence and from beginning of senescence to harvest time) in field grown potato cultivar Asterix. Field experiments were carried out at Santa Maria RS, Brazil, with eleven planting dates during 2003 and 2004. The experimental design was a complete randomized block design with four replications. Thermal time for different developmental phases varied according to planting date, calculation method, and cardinal temperatures. These results indicate that the thermal time should be used with caution to tell time in potato.

Plastocrono e rendimento de feijão-de-vagem cultivado sob ambiente protegido e no ambiente externo em semeadura tardia no outono

Snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is a horticultural crop that is enhanced during Fall in Rio Grande do Sul State, which can be favored by growing inside a plastic greenhouse (protected cropping). The estimation of the time interval between the appearance of two successive nodes on a dicot stem, known as plastochron, is important in modeling studies and for crop management. The objective of this study was to evaluate the plastochron and the yield of snap bean grown inside plastic greenhouse (protected environment) and in the open field. An experiment was carried out in Santa Maria, RS, Brazil, during the Fall 2009 in two environments: protected environment (plastic house covered with 100µm of thickness low density polyethylene) and in the open field. Solar radiation, air temperature, thermal time, the main stem node appearance (plastochron) and pod yield were determined. Solar radiation was, 26% lower in the protected environment, and minimum, mean and maximum air temperatures were greater in the protected environment. The plastochron was higher (lower node appearance rate) in the protected environment whereas pod yield was similar in the two environments. The reduction in solar irradiation, caused by the plastic cover, was pointed out as a major cause for the lower node appearance rate (greater plastochron) of the plants in the protected environment whereas reproductive growth in the protected environment was similar to the one in the open field most likely because of the increase in the diffuse fraction of solar radiation that partially compensated the plastic shading, and because of the less plants exposure to possible mechanic stresses as wind and hydraulic during the hottest hours of the day when water demand is the highest.

Associação da variabilidade da precipitação pluvial em Santa Maria com a Oscilação Decadal do Pacífico

The objective of this work was to verify the association of the interdecadal variability of rainfall in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, with the Pacific Decadal Oscillation. Part of the interannual variation in rainfall is explained by the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the Pacific Ocean. In the second half of the 1990s, another oscillation in the surface temperature of the Pacific Ocean was reported, with greater duration than ENSO, named the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). Monthly precipitation data collected at the Meteorological Station of Santa Maria of the 1912-2008 period and monthly PDO indices of the same period were used. The analyses were performed on an annual, semestral (first and second semester), seasonal (Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring), and monthly basis. There is a link between rainfall and PDO, because decades with precipitation higher than normal are associated with a warm phase of PDO, followed by decades with below-normal rainfall associated with a cool phase of PDO, which indicate mid and long-term periodic oscillations of rainfall in Santa Maria.