MELO, R. A. P.; http://lattes.cnpq.br/5668544274603374.; MELO, Raul Amador Pinheiro de.
Resumo:
Silicon is considered a beneficial element for plants due to its function in attenuating the negative effects caused by biotic and abiotic stresses, contributing directly and in a positive way to the production and quality of horticultural plants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the growth and gaseous changes in sweet pepper influenced by silicate fertilization and water stress. The experiment was carried out in the field at Rolando Enrique Rivas Castellón experimental farm, belonging to UFCG / CCTA, Campus Pombal - PB. In that the experimental design was a randomized block design, with four replications and 10 plants per plot. The treatments tested comprised a 5 x 2 factorial scheme, with five doses of potassium silicate (0, 2.2, 4.4, 6.6, 8.8 kg ha -1 of Si) and under water stress conditions and ideal water conditions, slides of 50% and 100% of ETr, respectively. The characteristics evaluated were leaf transpiration rate, intercellular CO2 concentration, stomatal conductance, CO2 assimilation rate, water use efficiency, intrinsic water use efficiency, instantaneous carboxylation efficiency, plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves and absolute growth rate of height and stem diameter. Silicon attenuated the effects of water stress on pepper plants at 120 days after transplanting (DAT) on the physiological and morphological variables studied. The estimated dose of 4.2 g Si L-1 presented the best results for the morphophysiological variables of pepper plants at 120 DAT for the two irrigation slides studied, 100% of ETr and 50% of ETr.