Exposição do agrotêxtil colorido no cultivo do melão amarelo.

Abstract

The objective was to evaluate the growth, production and quality of the yellow melon according to the use of the agrotextile with different colors and time of exposure in the plants in the conditions of the semi-arid region of Paraíba. The experiment was carried out from November 2018 to January 2019, with plants of the hybrid of yellow melon, with a spacing of 2.0 x 0.5 m in São Domingos - PB, at the Experimental Farm of the Federal University of Campina Grande. The treatments were distributed in a randomized block design, in a 4 x 4 factorial scheme, with 4 repetitions and consisting of four colors of the agrotextile (orange, white, gray and blue) and four times of residence in the plants (15, 18, 21 and 24 days after transplantation - DAT). The following characteristics were evaluated: photosynthetically active radiation, average temperature, leaf area, number of fruits per plant, average fruit mass, total productivity, fruit length, fruit diameter, fruit diameter, fruit shape index, diameter of the fruit internal cavity, skin firmness, flesh firmness, flesh thickness, soluble solids, titratable acidity, vitamin C, soluble sugars, reducing sugars and non-reducing sugars. The use of colored pesticides associated with the time of exposure promoted a change in the production characteristics and in the quality of the yellow melon fruits. The highest productivity, number of fruits and mass of the melon fruits were obtained when the plants were covered with the orange pesticide at 15, 18 and 24 days after transplantation. The delay in removing the agrotextile from 15 to 24 DAT resulted in reductions in production characteristics and fruit quality.