Dithiocarbamates are widely used fungicides, including in passion fruit, whose fruits are mainly used for juice production, the leaves for the preparation of herbal tea and medicines. Also, the use of the peel in the food industry has been proposed. In this study, the spectrophotometric method for determination of dithiocarbamate residues, as CS2, in passion fruit (Passiflora edulis) was validated at a limit of quantification (LOQ) of 0.05 mg kg-1 CS2, and 108 samples (55 fruits and 53 leaves) collected from Brazilian growers were analyzed. About 25% of the fruit peel samples were positive (0.06 to 1.4 mg kg-1) and only one sample had residues in the pulp (0.09 mg kg-1), 43.4% of leaf samples contained residues. Washing of fruit reduced the residues in the peel by up to 100%, and drying the leaves increased residue levels by up to 60%. This is the first study that reports dithiocarbamate residues in passion fruit in Brazil, and the results are important for government authorities when planning monitoring programs, and for food and herbal medicine industries.

RESUMO O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar os teores de macronutrientes nos cladódios e o rendimento da palma forrageira ‘Gigante’ cultivada com diferentes doses de esterco bovino e espaçamentos de plantio. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos ao acaso no esquema fatorial 4 x 3, com três repetições. Os tratamentos constaram da combinação de quatro doses de esterco bovino (0; 30; 60 e 90 Mg ha-1 ano-1) com três espaçamentos (1,00 x 0,50, 2,00 x 0,25 e 3,00 x 1,00 x 0,25 m). Aos 600 dias após o plantio foram avaliados os teores de macronutrientes e a produção de massa seca de cladódios. Os espaçamentos influenciaram os teores de nitrogênio, potássio, cálcio e enxofre nos cladódios da palma forrageira ‘Gigante’ havendo interação entre espaçamento e dose para os teores de magnésio. O aumento das doses de esterco bovino eleva os teores de fósforo, nitrogênio, potássio e enxofre nos cladódios. A máxima produção de massa seca de cladódios é estimada em 21,8 Mg ha-1 ano-1 com dose de 71,8 Mg ha-1 ano-1 de esterco.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate the levels of macronutrients in cladodes and yield of cactus pear, cv. ‘Gigante’, cultivated with different cattle manure doses and plant spacings. The experimental design was randomized blocks in 4 x 3 factorial, with three replicates. The treatments consisted of the combination of four doses of cattle manure (0, 30, 60 and 90 Mg ha-1 year-1) with three spacings (1.00 x 0.50, 2.00 x 0.25 and 3.00 x 1.00 x 0.25 m). The contents of macronutrients and dry matter production of cladodes were assessed 600 days after planting. The plant spacings influenced the contents of nitrogen, potassium, calcium and sulfur in the cladodes of ‘Gigante’ cactus pear and there was interaction between spacing and manure dose for magnesium contents. The increment in cattle manure doses increases the contents of phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium and sulfur in the cladodes. The maximum dry matter production of cladodes is estimated at 21.8 Mg ha-1 year-1 at a dose of 71.8 Mg ha-1 year-1 of manure.