Respostas de bulbilhos de Agave sisalana perrine sob estresse hídrico.

Abstract

The family Agavaceae comprises tropical species of the New World. Agave is the largest with many of its species with commercial interests. In Brazil it is grown Agave sisalana plant producing natural fibers grown in the semiarid Northeast. The aim of this study was to analyze the responses of bulbils of Agave sisalana under water stress. The work was conducted in the Laboratory of Cell Biology UFCG-CES, Cuité-PB. Bulbils of Agave sisalana were separated into two stages and subjected to two treatments (control and stress) for 32 days. In experiment 1, samples were collected at 0, 2, 4, 8, 32 days to review the length of leaves and roots. For experiment 2, samples were collected at 0, 8, 16, 32 days for the analysis of fresh weight and dry weight. The experiment was completely randomized with three replicates for all parameters evaluated. These characteristics were the length of the leaves and roots and fresh weight and dry weight. The results showed that the length of the leaves in the stadium cloves 1 under drought stress treatment were reduced after 32 days. For stage 2, the average leaf length was normal in control and bulbils under treatment showed constant length during the experiment. In both developmental stages roots showed an increase in the control and treatment. The roots under treatment had limited root growth due to water stress. The fresh weight showed no difference in stage 1. In stage 2, the bulbils of Agave sisalana had their fresh matter weight of reduced during the 32 th day. For dry weight the two stages did not differ during the experiment. The study found that bulbils of Agave sisalana at two different stages of development showed drought tolerance characteristics that promote survival in the face of the effects of water stress.