Aclimatization "ex vitro" of anturio seedlings in differents substrates.

Abstract

The substrates used for ex vitro acclimatization may affect the performance of the plants by means of physical, chemical, and biological characteristics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of eight substrates on the acclimatization of micropropagated anthurium plantlets. The experiment was carried out in the greenhouse of the Department of horticulture, Federal University-Ceara State (UFC), in Fortaleza.  Plantlets obtained by tissue culture, with approximately 3.8 cm of height, were transplanted to plastic trays composed of 54 cells (80 cm3cell-1) and irrigated with nutritive solution CE (1.0 dS.m-1) alternated with water. Ninety days upon transplant, plant height, fresh weight of the shoots and roots, dry weight of shoots and roots, and leaf number were evaluated. The experimental design was a completely randomized system, with eight treatments (coir dust, coir dust plus carnauba straw, coir dust plus carbonated rice straw, humus, carnauba straw, vermiculite, commercial 1, and commercial 2) and 24 replications. Anthurium plantlets grown in dried coir dust substrate showed the best development and growth, suggesting that the physical-chemical characteristics (CTC, pH, EC, porosity, water retention, and aeration) presented by this substrate are the most adequate to the acclimatization of anthurium plantlets. Plantlets acclimatized in the vermiculite substrate also presented satisfactory development.