Effects of soil compaction and wood ash application on reproductive components of safflower

Efeitos da compactação do solo e aplicação de cinza vegetal sobre componentes reprodutivos do cártamo

ABSTRACT

Increased mechanization favors subsurface soil compaction, and the addition of agro-industrial waste can improve its chemical and physical characteristics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the reproductive components of safflower cultivated in Brazilian Cerrado soil compacted and fertilized with wood ash. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse with a randomized block design with five levels of compaction and fertilized with five doses of wood ash, with 4 replicates, totaling 100 experimental units. The data on the number of branches, days to flowering, number of capitula, capitulum dry mass and total shoot dry mass were collected 75 days after plant emergence at the time of harvest. The results were subjected to analysis of variance; when significant, regression was applied with a significance of up to 5%. All the variables analyzed were affected by compaction level and wood ash level. The dose of wood ash that provided the highest shoot dry weight was 25.25 g dm^-3. For the soil bulk density levels, the linear decreasing regression model was adjusted as the soil bulk density levels increased. Thus, the addition of wood ash is beneficial for the development of safflower crops up to a dose of 24 g dm^-3, and an increase in soil compaction from 1.2 Mg dm^-3 is harmful to plant development.

Keywords:
Physical attribute; Solid waste; Oilseed; Productive characteristics.