ABSTRACT Garden pansy is a versatile gardening plant – it produces beautiful colorful edible-flowers with high value in gourmet cuisine. The use of irrigation and biotechnology in garden pansy cultivation can provide gains in flower productivity and nutritional value. The goal of this study was to evaluate the growth and edible flower production in garden pansy plants, submitted to different levels of irrigation and mycorrhizal inoculation. The experiment was conducted in randomized blocks in the 2 x 5 factorial design, with the presence and absence of mycorrhizal inoculation in combination with 5 levels of irrigation with 6 replicates, in a greenhouse. There was no significant interaction between the factors mycorrhizal inoculation and irrigation levels by the F test. Under the tested conditions, the mycorrhizal inoculation was unable to provide significant changes in the growth, development and flowering of garden pansy plants. It was concluded that no symbiotic efficiency was pointed out between the mycorrhizal fungus used and garden pansy plants. The best growth and yield results for cultivating and producing edible flowers of garden pansy were obtained at the 100% replenishment level of water evaporation.

ABSTRACT Edible flowers have been increasingly used in the Brazilian gastronomy because they are considered functional foods with high antioxidant potential. Studies on the management of cultivation of edible flowers to increase the production of bioactive compounds have been developed aiming at the improvement of production systems. The objective of this work was to evaluate the production of bioactive compounds in garden pansy (Viola wittrockiana Gams ex Nauenb. & Buttler) plants submitted to different levels of irrigation and mycorrhizal inoculation. The greenhouse experiment was conducted in randomized blocks in a 2x5 factorial design with the presence and absence of mycorrhizal inoculation in combination with 5 levels of water evaporation (120%, 100%, 80%, 60% and 40%) replaced by irrigation, totaling 10 treatments with 6 replicates. The contents of bioactive compounds (total phenolic compounds, flavonoids and total anthocyanins) present in the flowers, collected over the reproductive period, were evaluated. There was a significant interaction between the factors mycorrhizal inoculation and irrigation levels by F test (p < 0.05) for total flavonoids and anthocyanins. The best results in the production of bioactive compounds were obtained for irrigation at the 100% replenishment level of water evaporation without the presence of mycorrhizal inoculation.

A aclimatização de mudas de orquídeas propagadas in vitro é um processo lento e que pode ser beneficiado com o uso de bioestimulantes, como, por exemplo, as substâncias húmicas. O presente trabalho objetivou estudar o crescimento de Cymbidium sp. em resposta à aplicação de ácidos húmicos extraídos de compostos orgânicos de cama de frango (AHcf) e de esterco bovino (AHeb) durante o período de aclimatização. As plantas micropropagadas foram imersas nas soluções de 0, 10, 20, 30 e 40mmol L-1 de C na forma de AHcf e de AHeb e aclimatizadas em viveiro. Aos 150 dias, as plantas foram coletadas para medição das variáveis: número de folhas, altura da planta, diâmetro do caule, matéria fresca da raiz e da parte aérea, matéria seca da raiz, da parte aérea e total, relação entre raiz:parte aérea. Os dados foram submetidos à análise de variância, contraste e análise de regressão. Os resultados mostraram incrementos no acúmulo de matéria seca total das plantas com a aplicação da concentração de 18,75mmol L-1 de C de AHcf e de 3,77mmol L-1 de C de AHeb, com incrementos em relação ao controle de 21 e 28%, respectivamente. Conclui-se que o uso dos ácidos húmicos nas doses indicadas acelera o crescimento das mudas propagadas in vitro de Cymbidium sp., favorecendo a diminuição do período necessário de aclimatização.

The acclimatization of in vitro propagated orchid is a slow process that can be benefited from the use of bio-stimulants, such as humic substances. This study investigated the growth of Cymbidium sp. in response to application of humic acids extracted from organic compounds poultry litter (AHcf) and manure (AHeb) during the acclimatization period. The plants were immersed in solutions of 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40mmol L-1 of C from AHcf and AHeb and acclimatized in a greenhouse. After 150 days, the plants were collected for measurement of variables: number of leaves, plant height, stem diameter, root and shoot fresh weight, root, shoot and total dry matter and root shoot ratio. Data were submitted to analysis of variance, regression analysis and contrast. The results showed increased accumulation of total dry matter of the plants with the application of concentration of 18.75mmol L-1 of C AHcf and 3.77mmol L-1 of C AHeb with increments in the control 21 and 28%, respectively. It is concluded that the use of humic acids at the indicated doses accelerates the growth of plantlets propagated in vitro of Cymbidium sp. favoring the reduction of time required for acclimatization.