The present study aimed to quantify the effects of hydric management during the hardening process of Handroanthus impetiginosus seedlings by means of foliar thermography and morphometric parameters of quality. Irrigation treatments of 60 seedlings each were carried out at the following frequencies: daily (control), and every two, three, and four days for four weeks. Measures of leaf temperature (LT), height increment, collar diameter, and root dry mass were performed. Quantification of LT occurred at the end of each irrigation management cycle and analysis of the other variables studied was performed at the beginning and end of the hardening process. Seedlings of H. impetiginosus irrigated daily presented higher diameter increment in relation to those irrigated every three days, and the seedlings irrigated every four days showed higher root system growth and reduction of aerial part growth. The use of infrared thermometry allowed LT assessment in seedlings of H. impetiginosus during hardening. It was possible to verify that the longer the water stress period, the higher the leaf temperature, with the highest temperature observed in seedlings irrigated every four days.
hydric deficit; purple-ipe; management of seedlings; foliar temperature