No abstract

The objective was to evaluate the quality of ornamental pepper seedlings, cultivar Pyramid, in different substrate volumes, with foliar application of paclobutrazol (PBZ).The experiment was carried out at the Mato Grosso do Sul State University -UEMS, in Cassilândia -MS. The experimental design was completely randomized, in a 2 x 2 factorial scheme (growth container x foliar application of PBZ) with four replicates of 36 seedlings each. Plastic trays (cells with a volume of 50 mL) and polystyrene trays (Isopor ® , 100 mL cells) were used as containers. The treatments were: polystyrene tray with PBZ application; polystyrene tray without PBZ application; plastic tray with PBZ application and plastic tray without the application of PBZ. Plant height, root length, stem diameter, shoot dry mass, root dry mass, total dry mass, height/stem diameter ratio (H/D), shoot/root ratio (S/R) and Dickson quality index were evaluated. Foliar application of paclobutrazol resulted in robust pepper seedlings with reduced size, suitable and desirable characteristics for ornamental purposes. The polystyrene trays with higher volume cells (100 mL) contributed to the higher quality of ornamental pepper seedlings.

Pepper trees have great ornamental value due to the varied colors of their fruits. Thus, the objective was to evaluate the Pyramid cultivar's production in different cultivation environments using benches with reflective material. The experiment was carried out in two protected environments: a) agricultural greenhouse with 42-50% shade screen under the plastic film and b) agricultural screen with black monofilament screen with 18% shade. Inside the environments, the production system was tested with and without reflective material on the cultivation bench. The experiments were conducted in a completely randomized design, with four replicates and six plants per plot. Joint analysis was used to compare environments. At 45, 60, and 75 days after transplantation, plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves, canopy area, and number of fruits were evaluated. The agricultural greenhouse with a 42/50% shade screen under the plastic film provided the formation of higher plants with greater stem diameter, greater number of leaves and fruits, and greater top diameter than the screen with 18% shading. The reflective mirror material showed positive results only for plant height.