The aim of this study was to compare plant oat morphological traits of cultivars at early stages, that may be more competitive against weeds. A field experiment was performed at Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, in Eldorado do Sul - RS, during 2005 cold season, in a completely random design, with four replicates. The oat cultivars evaluated were: 'ALBASUL', 'CFT 1', 'FAPA 5', 'FAPA 6', 'UFRGS 19', 'UPF 16', 'UPFA 20', 'UPFA 22', 'URS 21', and 'URS 22'. Plant traits evaluated were: plant height, shoot dry matter, soil canopy coverage, increases in height, dry matter and coverage, competitive potential, biological yield, grain yield, and harvest index. Oat cultivars show outstanding variations regarding to morphological traits during the initial growth period. 'UPF 16' and 'UPFA 22' cultivars present typical characteristics of competing plants, due to high soil coverage by their canopies and to fast increments in height and in soil coverage, during the initial growth period. 'ALBASUL' cultivar, on the other hand, does not hold a competitor profile with weeds at the beginning of development, although it presents high grain yield and high harvest index.
Avena sativa; interference; competition; genotypes; cultural management
