INTERFERÊNCIA DE PLANTAS DANINHAS NO CRESCIMENTO DO PIMENTÃO NOS SISTEMAS DE PLANTIO DIRETO E CONVENCIONAL

Abstract

Aiming at assessing the growth of sweet peppers (Ca psicum annum L.), submitted to different controlling strategies of weeds in the no-trillage and conventional planting systems, an experiment wa s carried out in UFERSA’s experimental orchard in Mossoró-RN. The split-plot scheme was used, which was distribu ted within the experimental design, in randomized block s with four replications. The planting systems (no- trillage and conventional) were assessed in the plots, and t hree weed handling strategies (soil covering with p olyethyl- ene film, with hoeing, and without hoeing) were ass essed in the subplots. Within each subplot, assessm ents were made on 0, 21, 42, 63, 84, 105, 126, and 147 d ays after transplanting (DAT) for the purpose of de termin- ing the following features of the sweet pepper: lea f area, leaf area index, dry mass of leaves, of ste m, of fruits, and the total dry mass per plant, leaf area ratio, leaf weight ratio as well as the rates of absolute and relative growth and of net assimilation. On the 30th and 90t h DAT, the weeds’ density was assessed in the treat ments without hoeing. It was found that the no-trillage s ystem displayed a decrease in the incidence of weed s as com- pared to the conventional planting system. The no-t rillage system decreased the incidence of weeds com pared to the conventional planting systems. The weed inte rference in treatments without hoeing reduced the g rowth of pepper in both systems and the no-trillage with hoeing system showed higher indices than the other manage- ment strategies of plants in both planting systems.