Liquid fertilizers as salt stress mitigators on growth and quality of sour passion fruit seedlings

Fertilizantes líquidos como mitigador do estresse salino no crescimento e qualidade de mudas de maracujazeiro-azedo

ABSTRACT

Salt stress constitutes one of the main limitations for the expansion of passion fruit cultivation in the Northeast region, especially when it occurs during seedling formation. Liquid fertilizers offer an alternative to reduce the harmful effects of salts on agricultural crops, including on the initial growth of sour passion fruit seedlings. Thus, the objective was to evaluate the application of liquid fertilizers as salt stress mitigators on the growth and quality of sour passion fruit seedlings. The experiment was conducted in a protected environment, distributed in a randomized block design, in a 2 × 4 factorial scheme, with four replications and four plants per plot. The treatments referred to irrigation with water of low (0.18 dS m^-1) and high (4.0 dS m^-1) salinity and application of liquid fertilizers to mitigate salt stress (Without fertilizers, Codasal^TM, Aminoagro raiz^TM and Codasal^TM + Aminoagro raiz^TM). The salinity of the substrate, the biometric parameters (height, diameter, leaf area, root volume and dry matter mass and leaf area ratio) and the quality of the sour passion fruit seedlings, obtained using the Dickson quality index, were evaluated. Irrigation with water of 4.0 dS m^-1 increases the salinity of the substrate, damaging the growth and quality of sour passion fruit seedlings; however, Aminoagro raiz^TM applied alone or associated with Codasal^TM reduces the adverse effects of salts on plants, promoting increases of up to 46.9% in total dry mass. Liquid fertilizers (Codasal^TM and Aminoagro raiz^TM) applied simultaneously are indicated as salt stress mitigators for sour passion fruit seedlings.

Keywords:
Passiflora edulis Sims; Saline water; Attenuators; Biometry; Quality index.