The growth and nutrition of pineapple (Ananas comosus L.) plantlets under different water retention regimes and manure

Abstract

Despite the many advantages of pineapple plants offered by micropropagation, there is difficulty in rooting and slowness in the growth of seedlings, requiring a long period of acclimatization in the greenhouses. The aim of this study was to evaluate organic sources and water retention polymers used for pineapple cultivar seedlings during the acclimatization phase. The experimental design was randomized blocks in a 2 × 2 × 3 factorial design. Bovine and goat manures were the organic sources that provided the greatest increases in growth characteristics for both cultivars. Goat manure was the organic sources that provided the greatest increases in growth characteristics for both cultivars. Provid seedlings with 20 leaves, height of 19.4 cm, diameter of the rosette of 26.03 mm and 23.1 cm of length of the root system at 270 days to "Vitória". For "Imperial" the goat manure promoted seedlings with 20 leaves and height of 27.8 cm in 220 days. Bovine manure provided greater nutritional gains to seedlings. The use of the hydrogel did not favor the growth of shoots. However, it resulted to the increase in root dry mass when incorporated into the manure for both cultivars. The "Imperial" cultivar had a higher macronutrient intake on seedlings' leaves than the "Vitória" cultivar at 270 days of acclimatization.

Acclimatization of micropropagated seedlings of pineapple cultivars on organic substrates

“…'Vitória' showed higher number of leaves (NL) ( Table 4). These results were higher than those observed by Mendonça et al (2017), who, at 270 days of acclimatization, verified PH of 19.6 and 20 cm and NL of 19.2 and 20.6 leaves, for cultivars 'Vitória' and 'Imperial', respectively, in substrate composed of soil and goat manure (1:1 v/v). The authors verified a better morphological performance of cv.…”

“…At 210 days of acclimatization, treatments standard substrate (SS) and standard substrate with carbonized rice husk (SS + C) showed plant height (PH) below (≤ 13.8 cm) the 20-30 cm recommended for field planting (Berilli et al, 2011;Mendonça et al, 2017) (Table 4). Table 4 -Shoot and root growth of the 'Pérola', 'Vitória' and 'Imperial' pineapples as function of the substrate.…”

“…In general terms, substrate components are adjusted aiming at a suitable culture medium for shoot and root development, so that chemical (nutrient availability and pH) and physical (porosity, texture, and structure) factors are in the proportions required by the plant species. Mendonça et al (2017) observed beneficial effects from the use of goat and bovine manure on the substrate composition for acclimatization of micropropagated seedlings of pineapple cultivars 'Vitória' and 'Imperial'. Working with humic acids (HA) (product of biodegradation of organic materials), Baldotto et al (2009) reported significant effects of HA doses on shoot and root growth; N, P, K, Ca, and Mg accumulation; and chlorophyll a/b -1 ratio of micropropagated seedlings of pineapple cv.…”

“…Substrate constituents vary greatly in the studies performed (Catunda et al, 2008;Cunha Filho et al, 2008;Oliveira-Cauduro et al, 2016;Mendonça et al, 2017), being common the use of organic materials. In general terms, substrate components are adjusted aiming at a suitable culture medium for shoot and root development, so that chemical (nutrient availability and pH) and physical (porosity, texture, and structure) factors are in the proportions required by the plant species.…”

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“…The superiority of bovine manure can be explained by the higher content of nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) in these sources. Such elements are directly involved in photosynthesis and respiration, which possibly resulted in an increased performance of seedlings when bovine manures were incorporated into the substrate (Mendonça et al, 2017).…”