A COMPACTAÇÃO DO SOLO E OS EFEITOS NO CRESCIMENTO INICIAL DO MILHO

Soil compaction determines, in a way, the relationships between air, water and temperature, which influence practically all stages of plant development. In this sense, the aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of different soil compaction levels on initial corn growth. The experiment was carried out in the experimental area of the Aurora Seedling Production Unit (UPMA), belonging to the University of Afro-Brazilian Lusophony International Integration (UNILAB), municipality of Redencao, Ceara. The experimental design used was completely randomized blocks, with five treatments (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100% soil compaction) and five replicates, totaling 25 experimental units. These experimental units were represented by 17 cm polypropylene pots with volume of 6.5 dm3. At 40 days after sowing (DAS), plant height in centimeters (AP), number of leaves (NF), stem diameter (DC), shoot dry matter (MSPA) and root dry matter (MSR) were evaluated. Results were submitted to analysis of variance and regression test at 5% probability using the ASSISTAT version 7.7 beta software. The results confirmed that shoot development, plant root growth, number of leaves and shoot and root dry matter are affected by soil compaction.