Morphological and yield responses of spineless cactus Orelha de Elefante Mexicana under different cutting intensities.

The objective was to evaluate the effects of different cutting intensities on the morphological responses and forage yield of spineless cactus Orelha de Elefante Mexicana (OEM) (Opuntia stricta (Haw.) Haw) in a 12-month cycle, receiving supplemental irrigation. Three cutting intensities were evaluated: cut preserving only the mother cladode (MOTHC), cut preserving primary cladodes (PRIMC), and cut preserving secondary cladodes (SECC), equivalent to initial residual cladode area index (rCAI) of 0.08, 0.33 and 0.69, respectively. The experiment was a randomized block design with eight replicates. The cutting intensities PRIMC and SECC resulted in higher plant height and width, total cladode number and cladode area index compared to MOTHC. The harvested plant weight, forage yield (t DM ha-1), forage accumulation rate and water use efficiency were greater for PRIMC and SECC in comparison to MOTHC. The forage yield for MOTHC was 20.92 t DM (dry matter) ha-1, while for PRIMC and SECC were 37.55 and 33.18 t DM ha-1, respectively. The final CAI was 1.23, 2.53 and 3.55 for MOTHC, SECC and PRIMC, respectively. Morphological and yield responses of OEM Spineless cactus under supplemental irrigation are influenced by cutting intensities, in which less intense cuts (preserving the primary or secondary cladodes) promote taller and wider plants, and higher forage yield.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	PEREIRA, J. de S., CAMPOS, F. S., CAVALCANTE, A. B., ARAUJO, G. G. L. de, NOGUEIRA, G. H. M. de S. M. F., SIMOES, W. L., VOLTOLINI, T. V.
Other Authors:	Juliana de Souza Pereira; Fleming Sena Campos; Anderson Barbosa Cavalcante; GHERMAN GARCIA LEAL DE ARAUJO, CPATSA; George Henrique Melo de Sá Marquim Ferraz Nogueira; WELSON LIMA SIMOES, CPATSA; TADEU VINHAS VOLTOLINI, CPATSA.
Format:	Artigo de periódico biblioteca
Language:	Ingles English
Published:	2021-02-18
Subjects:	Orelha de Elefante Mexicana., Rendimento da palma forrageira, Intensidades de corte, Resposta morfológica, Palma Forrageira, Corte, Irrigação Suplementar., Rendimento, Forage yield, Harvesting., Opuntia,
Online Access:	http://www.alice.cnptia.embrapa.br/alice/handle/doc/1130086 http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-99402121142020
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