Organic fertilizers as mitigating effects of water salinity on Passiflora cincinnata seedlings

Abstract

Maracujá-do-mato (Passiflora cincinnata) is a species adapted to the climatic conditions of the Brazilian semi-arid region and widely used as rootstock, however, studies related to the production of seedlings and their resistance to abiotic stresses are scarce in literature. The objective was to study the production of maracujá-do-mato seedlings under the effect of the electrical conductivity on the irrigation water as a function of the application of organic fertilizers. The experiment was developed at the State University of Paraíba, Catolé do Rocha-PB, in a completely randomized experimental design, in a 5 x 3 factorial scheme, with 6 replicates. The factors evaluated were five electrical conductivities of irrigation water (ECw: 1; 2; 3; 4 and 5 dS m-1) and application of three organic fertilizers (bovine urine, bovine biofertilizer and liquid earthworm humus). It was verified that the increase of ECw affected the morphology and the quality of the seedlings negatively, while the bovine biofertilizer presented better efficiency in comparison to the others. It is inferred that the use of organic fertilizers as mitigating effects of salinity may be a strategy for production of maracujá-do-mato seedlings in saline conditions.