Different irrigation frequency on the growth and production of Macroptilium lathyroides (L.) Urb

Abstract

The use of native forage species adapted to the climatic conditions of the Brazilian semiarid region is an alternative to increasing the regional livestock productivity. In this sense, the objective of the present study was to evaluate the growth characteristics and production of Macroptilium lathyroides (L.) Urb. when subjected to different irrigation frequency. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with five treatments and six replications, where the treatments consisted of five irrigation shifts corresponding to the irrigation intervals 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 days. It was not observed effect of watering shifts to produce litter. For the number of leaves, decrease fitting 30 for 11 sheets with increased irrigation interval. Dry matter production of forage presented exponential fit, with greater reduction to the 4 day irrigation schedule. The other variables linearly decreased with the increase in frequency of irrigation. The increase in the range of irrigation frequency promotes reduction in the growth and production of Macroptilium lathyroides (L.) Urb. The two days irrigation interval revealed as the least restrictive to their development.