O presente trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar o desempenho agronômico do consórcio de alface e rúcula fertilizado com diferentes quantidades de biomassa de flor-de-seda incorporadas ao solo. O experimento foi conduzido no período de setembro a novembro de 2011, na área de pesquisa da Fazenda Experimental Rafael Fernandes da Universidade Federal Rural do Semi-Árido, Mossoró-RN. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi em blocos ao acaso com cinco tratamentos e quatro repetições. Os tratamentos consistiram das seguintes quantidades de biomassa de flor-de-seda incorporadas ao solo (5,15, 25, 35 e 45 t ha^-1 em base seca). As características avaliadas nas hortaliças foram: altura e diâmetro de plantas (alface), número de folhas por planta, produtividade (alface), rendimento de massa verde (rúcula) e massa seca da parte aérea. A eficiência do cultivo consorciado foi determinada pelo escore da variável canônica. A otimização do desempenho agronômico da alface consorciada com rúcula foi viabilizada com a incorporação de aproximadamente 37 t ha^-1 de flor-de-seda ao solo. O uso de flor-de-seda como adubo verde é viável agronomicamente no cultivo associado de alface e rúcula, além de contribuir para um melhor aproveitamento dos recursos ambientais.

Enzyme assays are based on methodologies described in the literature. However, the enzyme kinetics must be adjusted to obtain more reliable results. This study aimed to adjust assays by testing different polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) extract amounts and reaction times in sweet potato cultivars harvested at different times. Sweet potato cultivars Paraná, Mãe de Família, and ESAM1 were harvested at 120, 150, and 180 days after planting and minimally processed. A 0.25 g sample was used to determine PPO and POD activities immediately after minimal processing at each harvest. Extraction was performed in 1500 μL phosphate buffer (0.2 M, pH 6.0). The PPO assay was performed by adding 10-50 μL extract, 1490-1450 μL phosphate buffer (0.2 M, pH 6.0), and 1500 μL catechol (0.2 M). The POD assay was carried out by adding 10-50 μL extract to a reaction medium containing 1790-1750 μL phosphate buffer (0.2 M, pH 6), 100 μl guaiacol (5 g L-1), and 100 μL hydrogen peroxide (0.8 g L-1). In both cases, the evaluated reaction times were 1, 2, and 3 min. In the three cultivars, PPO and POD activities increased with the volume of extract and reaction time at all harvest times. The enzyme extract volume of 10 μL for 2 min promoted a continuous increase in PPO and POD enzyme activities in all studied cultivars and at all reaction times.

The large variation in the response of sunflower to nitrogen fertilization indicates the need for studies to better adjust the optimum levels of this nutrient for production conditions. Our objectives were to analyze the agronomic yield of sunflower cultivars as a function of nitrogen fertilization; indicate the cultivar with high nitrogen use efficiency; and measure the adequate N dose for sunflower through nutritional efficiency. The completely randomized block design with split plots was used to conduct the experiments. The treatments included five nitrogen rates being allocated in the plots and the four sunflower cultivars. To estimate the nutrient use efficiency in the sunflower, we measured agronomic efficiency (AE), physiological efficiency (PE), agrophysiological efficiency (APE), apparent recovery efficiency (ARE), and utilization efficiency (UE). The results indicate that all cultivars had a reduction in AE due to the increase in N doses in the first crop. For PE, the highest values were observed for Altis 99 during the 2016 harvest. In that same harvest, Altis 99 had the highest APE. The dose of 30 kg ha⁻¹ provided greater ARE for all cultivars in both crops, with greater emphasis on BRS 122 and Altis 99. The cultivation of cultivars Altis 99 and Multissol at a dose of 30 kg ha⁻¹ in is recommended semiarid regions.

The intercropping practice is a viable technological option for the production of vegetables and the success of the association between crops will be greater the greater the complementarity between them. The present work was conducted from June to November 2006, at Universidade Federal Rural do Semi-Árido, Rio Grande do Norte State, Brazil, to evaluate the productive performance of two lettuce and two rocket cultivars in two cultures in strip-intercropping systems. The experimental design was randomized complete blocks, with five replications and treatments arranged in a 2 x 2 + 2 factorial. The treatments consisted of the combination of two lettuce cultivars (Babá de Verão and Tainá) and two of rocket (Cultivada and Folha Larga) intercropped with carrot 'Brasília' plus two additional treatments (two lettuce cultivars or two rocket cultivars grown in sole crop). In each block a plot with carrot in sole crop was grown. The evaluated traits in lettuce were plant height and diameter, number of leaves per plant, productivity and shoot dry matter mass. In rocket were evaluated plant height, number of leaves per plant, green mass yield and shoot dry matter mass; and in carrot: plant height, total and marketable productivity, besides root classes, in long and medium roots, short roots and scrap roots. The Tainá lettuce cultivar had the best yield performance both in sole crop and intercropping system. The Cultivada and Folha Larga rocket cultivars had similar yield performance in both cropping systems. Both lettuce and rocket crops had better productive performance in the second culture. The mean production of carrot marketable roots in intercropping systems was 68.3%, being 48.6% for long and medium roots and 19.7% for short roots, while in the sole crop the mean production of marketable carrot roots was of 75.0%, being 51.7% for long and medium roots and 23.3% for short roots.

Dois experimentos foram implantados de setembro a dezembro/2002, na ESAM (RN), para avaliar o desempenho agroeconômico do bicultivo de dois grupos de alface em sistema solteiro e consorciado com duas cultivares de cenoura em faixas. O delineamento experimental foi de blocos balanceados em grupos, com quatro repetições. Foram avaliadas as cultivares pertencentes aos grupos crespa (Lucy Brown, Tainá, Laurel e Verônica) e lisa (Babá de Verão, Maravilha das Quatro Estações, Elisa e Carolina). No experimento consorciado foi utilizado o esquema de parcelas sub-divididas, onde os tratamentos designados às parcelas foram as cvs. de cenoura Alvorada e Brasília e os designados às sub-parcelas foram as cvs. de alface do grupo crespa e as do grupo lisa. Na alface foi avaliado o rendimento de folhas e na cenoura o rendimento total, comercial e a classe das raízes. Foram usados índices agroeconômicos para medir a eficiência do sistema consorciado: Índice de Uso Eficiente da Terra, Renda Bruta, Renda Líquida, Vantagem Monetária, Vantagem Monetária Corrigida, Taxa de Retorno e Índice de Lucratividade. Não houve interação significativa entre os fatores cvs. de cenoura e cvs. de alface sobre os rendimentos das culturas. As cvs. de cenoura não influenciaram os rendimentos das culturas. As cvs. de alface não afetaram os rendimentos da cenoura. No bicultivo da alface consorciada com cenoura, recomenda-se o emprego das cvs Lucy Brown e Tainá do grupo crespa ou da 'Babá de Verão' e 'Maravilha das Quatro Estações' do grupo lisa no primeiro plantio. No segundo plantio, apenas a cv. do grupo lisa Maravilha das Quatro Estações se sobressaiu das demais no desempenho produtivo em cultivo consorciado.As cultivares de alface do grupo crespa consorciadas com cenoura se sobressaíram daquelas do grupo lisa no desempenho produtivo. Os consórcios cenoura 'Alvorada' x alface 'Lucy Brown'; e cenoura 'Brasília' x alface 'Maravilha das Quatro Estações', tiveram os melhores indicadores agroeconômicos, com índices de uso eficiente da terra de 2,16 e 2,15, taxas de retorno de 2,05 e 2,33, e índices de lucratividade de 53,92% e 59,83%, respectivamente.

Sunflower is an oleaginous plant of great importance worldwide that stands out in the production of edible oil and human food. The identification of differences between cultivars regarding the use of phosphorus and the production of achenes at different levels of phosphate fertilization is a viable strategy to allow its cultivation in soils with different concentrations of phosphorus, without compromising yield and reducing environmental damage associated with excessive applications of phosphate fertilizers. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate different levels of phosphorus fertilization and sunflower cultivars regarding the efficiency of phosphorus use in two agricultural crops. The experimental design was in randomized blocks with four replications in split-plots, where four doses of phosphorus (50, 100, 150, and 200 kg ha⁻¹ of P₂O₅) were allocated in the plots, and in the subplots three sunflower cultivars (Aguará 06, Altis 99, and BRS 122). The phosphorus use efficiency of sunflower cultivars was estimated through agronomic efficiency, vegetative efficiency, agrophysiological efficiency, apparent recovery efficiency, and utilization efficiency. The dose of 50 kg ha⁻¹ of P₂O₅ provided the best phosphorus efficiency indices for the different sunflower cultivars in the two studied crops. Cultivar Aguará 06 was more efficient in conditions with P₂O₅ supply below 150 kg ha⁻¹, regardless of the crop. Sunflower cultivars had the best efficiency indices of phosphorus applied in the 2016 harvest.