EMERGENCY AND INITIAL DEVELOPMENT OF CORN INOCULATED WITH AZOSPIRILLUM BRASILENSE

Abstract

DIAZOTROPHIC BACTERIA OF THE GENUS AZOSPIRILLUM PROMOTE PLANT GROWTH OF GRASSES SUCH AS CORN, BY INCREASING THE ROOT ABSORPTION SURFACE, PHYTOHORMONES PRODUCTION AND BIOLOGICAL NITROGEN FIXATION. THIS WORK AIMED TO EVALUATE THE INOCULATION OF AZOSPIRILLUM BRASILENSE AND ITS EFFECTS ON SEED GERMINATION AND INITIAL DEVELOPMENT OF MAIZE SEEDLINGS. THE STUDY WAS CARRIED OUT AT EMATER'S EXPERIMENTAL STATION, IN THE CITY OF ANÁPOLIS, GO. THE EXPERIMENT WAS CARRIED OUT IN A RANDOMIZED BLOCK DESIGN 3X2, WITH THREE VARIETIES, TWO TREATMENTS AND FIVE REPLICATIONS, CONSISTENT IN THE HYBRIDS KWS 8774 PRO3 (TRANSGENIC); ADV 9860 PRO2 (TRANSGENIC) AND TO CULTIVAR BANDEIRANTES (WITHOUT TRANSGENIC) AND INOCULATION WITH AZOSPIRILLUM BRASILENSE STRAIN ABV5 AND ABV6. THE EXPERIMENTAL UNITS CONSISTED OF PLASTIC VASES, WHICH WERE DIVIDED INTO TWELVE EXPERIMENTAL PARCELS. EMERGENCE PERCENTAGE, EMERGENCE SPEED INDEX, MEAN GERMINATION TIME, MEAN EMERGENCE SPEED, PLANT FRESH AND DRY MASS, ROOT FRESH AND DRY MASS, ROOT AND PLANT LENGTH AND STEM DIAMETER WERE EVALUATED. THE COLLECTED DATA WERE TABULATED AND SUBJECTED TO ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE ANOVA AND COMPARISON OF MEANS BY TUKEY TEST AT 5% PROBABILITY PERFORMED BY THE SISVAR�® SOFTWARE. INOCULATION WITH AZOSPIRILLUM BRASILENSE IS EFFICIENT AGAINST THE CORN HYBRIDS USED. THE PRESENCE OF DIFFERENT SEED TECHNOLOGIES DID NOT HAVE A DECISIVE INFLUENCE ON THE INITIAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANT AGAINST INOCULATION. FOR JULY PLANTING, INOCULATION INFLUENCED THE PERFORMANCE IN THE PARAMETERS OF ROOT LENGTH, PLANT HEIGHT, STEM DIAMETER AND ROOT DRY MASS. FOR THE AUGUST PLANTING, INOCULATION INFLUENCED THE PERFORMANCE OF ROOT LENGTH, STEM DIAMETER, DRY MASS OF ROOT AND SHOOT. THE VARIATIONS OBSERVED WITH THE INOCULATION AZOSPIRILLUM BRASILENSE IN THE INITIAL DEVELOPMENT OF CORN SHOULD BE BETTER STUDIED FOR ITS ELUCIDATION.