Ação do maturador Ethephon na germinação de sementes e no ciclo da cultura do milho (Zea mays, L.)

Abstract

Zea mays, L. has great economic interest, however, climate change has put its cultivation at risk. Therefore, the present work aims to evaluate the effect of the Ethrel ripener, a precursor of Ethylene in the corn crop, by carrying out an experiment divided into two stages. The first stage took place in the field, with the formation of 5 treatments, through 5 replications in a Completely Randomized Design (DIC), according to the spraying time: T1- control (without product application); T2 - spraying 0.6 L/ha-1 of Ethrel (50 days after sowing); T3- with the same dose at 70 days; T4 – at 90 days; and T5 – at 110 days. And the second, carried out in the laboratory, with the purpose of observing the influence of the same product on seed germination through three treatments with 4 repetitions (T1- control; T2- seed treatment with 5 microliters of the product; and T3- with 10 microliters). The evaluated parameters consisted of: grain moisture; plant height; ear aspects; productivity; height, green and dry matter of seedlings. Regarding the field part, T3 and T4 stood out, where the reduction in moisture was not followed by a large drop in production. With regard to the laboratory part, significant results were observed in the treatment with 600 mg/L-1 of Ethrel, increasing all the biometric parameters analyzed. Finally, the results obtained showed that Ethrel is an important ally in accelerating the cycle and in the initial development of the corn crop