ABSTRACT The growing demand for gladiolus, especially at peaks of consumption, requires efficient scheduled production and good quality of floral stems. The objective of this study was to understand how water deficit affects the growth and development of gladiolus and, consequently, the quality of the floral stems produced. Plant development, quantitative parameters of the floral stems, and dry mass partitioning were evaluated in two field experiments with four gladiolus cultivars, with and without irrigation. The development cycle was longer in the non-irrigated treatment, whereas its duration under no water deficit was similar to that predicted by PhenoGlad, which is a gladiolus phenology model. As PhenoGlad predicts gladiolus development only for scenarios without water deficit, the inclusion of a water-stress submodel in the model would allow its application to any water supply scenario and help decision makers and farmers to plan gladiolus production more accurately. Water deficit also reduced gladiolus growth and flower stem size, but did not affect dry mass partitioning. As the development and quality of the floral stems of gladiolus were negatively affected by water stress, irrigation is essential for producing high-quality gladiolus floral stems and enabling production planning for peaks of consumption.

ABSTRACT Soil compression curve (CC) provides parameters to identify soil load-bearing capacity and susceptibility to compaction. An Excel add-in (ACC) incorporating graphical procedures for mathematical models for soil CC description and calculation of parameters was developed. By using the ACC, soil CC can be described by means of the Casagrande method, mathematically operationalized with the van Genuchten equation, with or without restrictions on its parameters, and by Dias Junior and Pierce method in its original form and also modified using the void ratio rather than soil bulk density. The ACC uses a single Excel spreadsheet for input and output data, in addition to a graphical interface and a tool for exporting editable charts. Compared to SAS statistical software, the ACC minimized the sum of squared residuals and estimated parameters of mathematical models with the same efficiency for 347 compression curves. The ACC programming script is available and can be modified or used as a framework for other programming projects.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to propose a model, named Simanihot, for simulating growth, development and yield of tuberous roots in cassava, with a choice of two soil water balance models. The model works on a day time step and is calibrated for five cassava cultivars (Fepagro –RS 14, Estrangeira, Cascuda, São José e Paraguaia), with different branching habits and different purpose of use (pasture, food and industry). The model has a graphical interface, where the user can choose one out of two soil water balance models, depending upon the number of known soil variables and details the user wants to know about soil water content.