The 'Hostess' Carnauba belongs to a group of plants from the Arecaceae family, which is of relevant social and economic importance for tropical areas in Brazil. The objective of this research was to study the effect of the size of the seed , substrate, and environment on the production of seedlings of 'Hostess' Carnauba (Copernicia hospita Martius). Seeds of different sizes (small, medium, large, and a mixture of different sizes) were planted in different substrates composed of red sand + carnauba straw + humus (2,5:2,5:1 in volume) and soil + dark sand + organic compost Polefértil (2:2:1 in volume), and cultivated in different environments (outdoors and indoors). The analyzed variables were: leaf length , leaf area, stem diameter, length of the longest root, and dry matter of the above and below ground parts. The size of the seed greatly affected all of the studied variables. Substrate type significantly affected leaf length, length of the longest root, and leaf area. The only variables not affected by the environment were of the dry matter from above and below ground parts. Thus, the results suggest that large seeds should be recommended for the production of C. hospita seedlings, and should be planted in a subtract composed of red sand + carnauba straw + humus for unshaded outdoor cultivation.
Hostess Carnauba; seed biometry; culture medium; shade
