Crescimento e produção da pimenta biquinho submetida a doses de nitrogênio e conteúdos de água do solo.

Abstract

The consumption of peppers is important in many sectors of the Brazilian economy, for the direct commercialization of peppers or when this is part of the composition of the products. The “biquinho” pepper (Capsicum chinense) is one of the most promising varieties of peppers, however, the knowledge about the correct management of this variety is not completely known. Because of this, one experiment was conducted in vases in a greenhouse to evaluate the effects of four nitrogen levels (75, 150, 225 and 300 kg ha-1) and four soil water contents (50, 75, 100 and 125% of the soil water capacity) on the ontogenesis and production of the pepper. The experimental design was a 4 x 4 factorial with completely randomized blocks and 3 replicates. The interaction between nitrogen doses and soil water content significantly influenced all growth variables, except plant height, with the highest values when estimating the use of 300 kg N ha-1 with the soil water content close to 100% of field capacity. The same occurred with the diameter and number of the fruits. The fruit diameter reached the highest value when estimating the use of 237,5 kg N ha-1 with water content at 100% of the field capacity, but the fruit production was unsatifatoty. From the viewpoint of fruit quality and market, the best fruit (weight and size) was obtained with the highest soil water content.