The semi-arid region of Northeastern Brazil has water limitations in terms of both quantity and quality, with salt stress as a limiting factor for increasing yield in most crops. In this context, the present study aimed to evaluate cell damage, gas exchange, and growth of custard apple under salt stress and potassium fertilization. The research was carried out at the Experimental Farm of CCTA/UFCG, in São Domingos-PB, Brazil. A randomized block design was arranged in a 2 × 5 factorial scheme, with two levels of electrical conductivity of irrigation water (ECw; 1.3 and 4.0 dS m-1) and five potassium doses (10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 g of K2O per plant per year). Water salinity of 4.0 dS m-1 negatively affected the stem diameter and number of leaves in custard apple at 179 and 210 days after transplanting (DAT). The highest relative growth in stem diameter in the period of 179-245 DAT was obtained in plants irrigated with 4.0 dS m-1 water and fertilized with 20 g of K2O per plant. Potassium doses of up to 30 g of K2O resulted in a higher percentage of cell damage and relative water content in custard apple leaf tissue. Water saturation deficit decreased with the increase in K2O doses in plants irrigated with water of 1.3 dS m-1. Irrigation with 1.3 dS m-1 water and estimated K2O doses ranging from 16 to 22 g per plant resulted in an increase in stomatal conductance, transpiration, CO2 assimilation rate, and instantaneous carboxylation efficiency in custard apple plants at 210 DAT.

The use of saline water for irrigation in semi-arid regions has become a reality due to the water scarcity that occurs in most of the year. In this scenario, exogenous application of salicylic acid may be a strategy to mitigate the deleterious effects of salt stress on plants and ensure the production of socioeconomically important crops in the semiarid region of Northeast Brazil, such as bell pepper. Thus, this study examines the osmoprotective effect of salicylic acid on gas exchanges, chloroplast pigments and production components of ‘All Big’ bell pepper plants irrigated with water with different saline levels. The experiment was carried out in greenhouse conditions in Campina Grande - PB, Brazil. Treatments consisted of four levels of electrical conductivity on the irrigation water (0.8, 1.6, 2.4 and 3.2 dS m-1) and four concentrations of salicylic acid (0, 1.2, 2.4 and 3.6 mM), which were distributed in a 4 × 4 factorial arrangement in a randomized block design with three replicates. Increases in irrigation water salinity from 0.8 dS m-1 resulted in changes in gas exchange and total chlorophyll levels of ‘All Big’ bell pepper plants. The estimated salicylic acid concentration of 1.7 mM reduced the effects of salinity on stomatal conductance, transpiration, CO2 assimilation rate, instantaneous carboxylation efficiency, total chlorophyll and fruit diameters. Irrigation with water of 1.8, 0.8 and 1.6 dS m-1 salinity associated with the estimated salicylic acid concentration of 1.6 mM increased the biosynthesis of chlorophylls a and b and the number of fruits, respectively, in bell pepper plants.

ABSTRACT In semiarid areas, the scarcity of water with low salt concentration associated with irregular precipitation becomes a limiting factor to ensure agricultural production. In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the growth and production of sesame genotypes under different strategies of use of saline water. The experiment was conducted under protected environment conditions, using a randomized block design in a 6 x 2 factorial scheme, and the treatments consisted of six strategies for the use of saline water in the different stages of plant development (SE = irrigation with low-salinity water throughout the cultivation cycle; VE, FL, FR, VE/FL and VE/FR - respectively, irrigation with high-salinity water at the vegetative stage, flowering, fruiting, vegetative/flowering and vegetative/fruiting) and two sesame genotypes (BRS Seda and BRS Anahí), with 4 replicates. Irrigation with high-salinity water (ECw = 2.7 dS m-1) during the vegetative, flowering and fruiting stages did not compromise sesame production. There were reductions in sesame growth when irrigation with high-salinity water was continuously applied at the vegetative/flowering stages and in sesame production when it was applied during the vegetative/flowering and vegetative/fruiting stages. The greater growth of BRS Seda sesame plants resulted in an increase in the total number of fruits and in the total seed weight.

The availability of water with low electrical conductivity for irrigation in the Northeastern semi-arid region is one of the limiting factors for the expansion of irrigated agriculture. Thus, it is necessary to use waters with high electrical conductivity, requiring the search for strategies to reduce the negative impacts of salts on plants. In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the morphophysiology and production of guava cv. Paluma subjected to irrigation with saline waters and foliar application of salicylic acid after grafting. The experiment was conducted under greenhouse conditions in Campina Grande - PB, Brazil, in a randomized block design, adopting a 2 × 4 factorial scheme, with two values of electrical conductivity of irrigation water - ECw (0.6 and 3.2 dS m-1) and four concentrations of salicylic acid (0, 1.2, 2.4 and 3.6 mM), with three replicates. Irrigation with water of 3.2 dS m-1 reduced gas exchange, rootstock and scion diameters, crown diameter and volume, vegetative vigor index, polar and equatorial diameters of fruit, number of fruits, mean fruit weight, and fresh fruit weight of fruits of guava cv. Paluma. Salicylic acid application up to 3.6 mM did not mitigate the effects of salt stress on grafted guava cv. Paluma, at 390 days after transplanting.

Salt stress is a threat to irrigated agriculture, especially in semi-arid regions, as it can cause irreversible damage to the photosynthetic apparatus at any stage of plant development, reducing chlorophyll biosynthesis, which compromises the photochemical efficiency and the photosynthetic process of plants. In this respect, phosphorus fertilization stands out as an alternative to mitigate the effects of salt stress on plants. Therefore, the present study investigated the growth, gas exchange, photosynthetic pigments, and photochemical efficiency of sesame cv. BRS Seda irrigated with saline water and fertilized with phosphorus. The experiment was carried out in pots adapted as lysimeters in a greenhouse in Pombal - PB, Brazil. Treatments were distributed in randomized blocks and analyzed in a 5 × 4 factorial arrangement with five levels of electrical conductivity of water (ECw: 0.3, 1.1, 1.9, 2.7, and 3.5 dS m-1) and four phosphorus rates (40, 70, 100, and 130% of the recommended dose for pot trials), in three replicates. The 100% recommendation consisted of applying 300 mg P2O5 kg-1 of soil. Sesame growth, chloroplast pigments, and gas exchange decreased with water salinity above 0.3 dS m-1. The application of 100 and 130% of the recommended phosphorus rate minimized the effects of salt stress on CO2 assimilation rate and photosynthetic pigment synthesis. The increase from 40 to 130% of the recommended phosphorus rate did not change the photochemical efficiency of sesame cv. BRS Seda at 60 days after sowing.

This study was conducted to evaluate the gas exchange, growth, and quality of passion fruit cultivars under irrigation with waters of different salinity levels. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse, in Pombal-PB, Brazil, using a randomized block design in a 5 ? 2 factorial arrangement, with five levels of electrical conductivity of irrigation water (0.3, 1.1, 1.9, 2.7, and 3.5 dS m-1) and two passion fruit cultivars (BRS Sol do Cerrado and Guinezinho), with three plants per plot and four replicates. The reduction in transpiration, intercellular CO2 concentration and CO2 assimilation rate in passion fruit plants grown with saline water was related to factors of stomatal and non-stomatal origin. Gas exchange and growth of passion fruit cultivars were negatively affected by water salinity from 0.3 dS m-1 at 75 days after sowing. Despite the reduction in the growth of the passion fruit cultivars, irrigation with water of up to 3.5 dS m-1 could be used to obtain seedlings with acceptable quality. Based on the relative yield of total dry phytomass, the passion fruit cultivars BRS Sol do Cerrado and Guinezinho were classified as moderately sensitive to water salinity during the seedling phase.

MORFOFISIOLOGIA DE GENÓTIPOS DE GERGELIM SUBMETIDOS A DIFERENTES ESTRATÉGIAS DE USO DE ÁGUA SALINA     ANDRÉ ALISSON RODRIGUES DA SILVA1; CASSIANO NOGUEIRA DE LACERDA1; GEOVANI SOARES DE LIMA1; LAURIANE ALMEIDA DOS ANJOS SOARES1; HANS RAJ GHEYI1 E PEDRO DANTAS FERNANDES1   1 Unidade Acadêmica de Engenharia Agrícola, Universidade Federal de Campina Grande, UFCG, Rua Aprígio Veloso, 882 - Universitário, Campina Grande, PB. E-mail: andrealisson_cgpb@hotmail.com; cassianonogueiraagro@gmail.com; geovani.soares@pq.cnpq.br; lauriane.soares@pq.cnpq.br; hgheyi@gmail.com; pedrodantasfernades@gmail.com.     1 RESUMO   Objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar as trocas gasosas e o acúmulo de fitomassas de genótipos de gergelim sob estratégias de uso de águas salinas. A pesquisa foi conduzida em casa de vegetação, em delineamento de blocos casualizados em arranjo fatorial 6 x 2, sendo seis estratégias de uso de águas salinas aplicadas nas diferentes fases fenológicas das plantas (SE-irrigação com água de baixa salinidade durante todo ciclo de cultivo; VE - irrigação com água de alta salinidade na fase vegetativa; FL - na fase de floração; FR na fase de frutificação; VE/FL - nas fases vegetativa/floração; VE/FR - nas fases vegetativa/frutificação) e dois genótipos de gergelim (BRS Seda e BRS Anahí), com quatro repetições. Foram aplicadas água com alta salinidade (2,7 dS m-1), em alternância com água com baixa concentração de sais (0,3 dS m-1), em fases diferentes do ciclo. A irrigação com água de 2,7 dS m-1 durante a fase de floração, e nas fases vegetativa/floração, não comprometeu a condutância estomática, transpiração e taxa de assimilação de CO2 dos genótipos de gergelim. A salinidade da água de 2,7 dS m-1 quando aplicada nas fases vegetativa/floração prejudicou o acúmulo de fitomassa pelas plantas de gergelim.   Palavras-chave: estresse salino, Sesamum indicum L., qualidade de água.     SILVA, A, A, R. da; LACERDA, C. N. de; LIMA, G. S. de; SOARES, L. A. dos A.; GHEYI, H. R.; FERNANDES, P.D. MORPHOPHYSIOLOGY OF SESAME GENOTYPES SUBMITTED TO DIFFERENT STRATEGIES FOR THE USE OF SALINE WATER     2 ABSTRACT   The objective of this study was to evaluate gas exchange and phytomass accumulation of sesame genotypes under different strategies for the use of saline water. The research was conducted in a greenhouse, in a randomized block design in a 6 x 2 factorial arrangement, with six strategies for the use of saline water applied in the different phenological phases of the plants (SE - irrigation with low salinity water throughout the cultivation cycle; VE - irrigation with high salinity water in the vegetative phase; FL - in the flowering phase; FR - in the fruiting phase; VE/FL - in the vegetative/flowering phase; VE/FR - in the phases vegetative/fruiting) and two sesame genotypes (BRS Seda and BRS Anahí), with four replicates. Water with high salinity (2.7 dS m-1) was used, alternating with water with low salt concentration (0.3 dS m-1), at different stages of the crop cycle. Irrigation with water of 2.7 dS m-1 during the flowering phase, and in the vegetative/flowering phases, did not compromise the stomatal conductance, transpiration and CO2 assimilation rate of sesame genotypes. The water salinity of 2.7 dS m-1 applied in the vegetative/flowering phases impaired the accumulation of phytomass by sesame plants.   Keywords: saline stress, Sesamum indicum L., water quality.

The semi-arid region of northeastern Brazil is characterized by irregular precipitation and high evapotranspiration, with a common occurrence of water sources with a high concentration of salts. In this context, this study aimed to evaluate the post-harvest fruit quality of grafted guava cv. Paluma under brackish water irrigation and foliar application of salicylic acid. The experiment was conducted under greenhouse conditions in Campina Grande, PB, Brazil, in a randomized block design, adopting a 2 × 4 factorial scheme, corresponding to two levels of electrical conductivity of irrigation water - ECw (0.6 and 3.2 dS m-1) and four concentrations of salicylic acid (0, 1.2, 2.4, and 3.6 mM), with three replicates. Electrical conductivity of 0.6 dS m-1 and salicylic acid concentration of 2.4 mM resulted in higher levels of reducing sugars and soluble solids. Salicylic acid with concentration from 0.6 to 3.6 mM promoted increments in ascorbic acid and at concentrations of 1.9 and 1.5 mM increased the titratable acidity and total soluble sugars, respectively, in the pulp of guava irrigated with water of 3.2 dS m-1. The hydrogen potential of the pulp increased with the application of salicylic acid, ranging from 1.2 to 3.6 mM, regardless of the electrical conductivity of the water.