ABSTRACT One of the main phytosanitary problems in major crops are phytonematodes, which are characterised as difficult to control. In view of this, biocontrol, through the use of biological agents, has become a driving force in controlling these pathogens. The aim of this study was to evaluate the compatibility of microorganisms, and detect the possibility of antagonistic effects, influence on growth, or synergistic action when microorganisms are jointly applied to crops. Microbiological analyses were carried out to observe the interaction of the fungus Trichoderma asperellum with the bacteria Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus methylotrophicus. It was found that the interaction between the genera Bacillus and Trichoderma did not promote any increase in the fresh or dry weight of the roots or shoots of the soya plants; however, based on the results of the microbiological analysis of the fungi and bacteria, the interaction was found to be promising, particularly in the evaluation carried out on the seventh day. Considering the number of viable spores, the interaction between B. subtilis + T. asperellum showed better results than B. methylotrophicus + T. asperellum. The Interaction between the genera Bacillus and Trichoderma showed the potential for joint use in the biological control of the soya bean.

ABSTRACT The chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is the third most cultivated legume in the world and the second most consumed. One of the main problems in producing seed of this species is the mechanical damage generated when harvesting or during post-harvest. With the aim of developing a protocol for rapid iodine testing, the aim of this study was to determine the most suitable exposure time for chickpea seeds in iodine solution, and the most appropriate concentration for staining naturally or artificially damaged seeds. Concentrations of 5%, 10% and 15% (commercial product containing 2% iodine) were tested on both intact and artificially damaged seeds for an immersion time of 2.5, 5.0, 10.0, 15.0 and 20.0 minutes. The correlation between the colour and the physical and physiological properties of ten seed batches exposed to 10% iodine for 10 and 15 minutes was also evaluated. The data were submitted to univariate and multivariate analysis. The iodine test, at a concentration of 10% of the commercial product (iodine concentration of 2%) for 15 minutes, is effective in evaluating the level of mechanical damage in chickpea seeds, due to the negative correlation between the colour of the seeds in the test and the physical and physiological qualities of the seeds.

ABSTRACT The early seedling stage is one of the most vulnerable and critical growth stages in the plant life cycle and determines the final plant stand and yield. Corn hybrids have distinct degrees of drought tolerance, and exploiting this characteristic is important to enhance agricultural production in many tropical regions of the world. Fourteen corn hybrids commonly grown in the central-western region of Brazil, in Cassilândia, Mato Grosso do Sul, were assessed for drought tolerance during the early plant growth stage. Plants were grown in the Plant Ecophysiology Laboratory under non-stressful (control) and stressful (moderate drought) conditions for 28 days. Drought stress was induced with an -0.30 MPa iso-osmotic solution prepared with polyethylene glycol (PEG-6000). The emergence rate, seedling length, and seedling dry matter were measured, and then drought tolerance indexes were calculated. Our results showed that root length is an important morphological trait for plant adaptation to drought stress conditions. Therefore, plant breeding programs should select corn genotypes with longer roots to develop commercial hybrids with superior performance under limited soil water availability. The corn hybrids FS 575 PWU, GNZ 7757 VIP3, LG 36745 PRO4, and MG 545 PWU have greater tolerance to drought stress and are the most suitable genotypes to be grown in conditions of low soil water availability. The AG 8088 PRO2 corn hybrid has greater susceptibility to drought stress and should not be recommended for cultivation in conditions of reduced soil water availability.

ABSTRACT The search for cropping systems that aim to have the best area use, optimize production, and guarantee financial profitability to the producer and their establishment in the field are challenges of modern research. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the productive and monetary viability of intercropping radish and coriander fertilized with equitable amounts of hairy woodrose and roostertree biomass from the Caatinga ecosystem at different coriander population densities in two cropping seasons. The experimental design used was randomized blocks, with treatments arranged in a 4 × 4 factorial scheme with four replications. The first factor was constituted by four equitable amounts of hairy woodrose and roostertree biomass (20, 35, 50 and 65 t ha-1 on a dry basis), and the second factor was constituted by coriander population densities (40, 60, 80 and 100% of the recommended density for monocropping, RDM). The greatest agronomic and monetary advantages of intercropping radish with coriander were obtained with a land equivalent coefficient and a monetary equivalence ratio of 0.42 and 0.76, respectively, in the amounts of hairy woodrose and roostertree biomass of 20 and 39 t ha-1 added to the soil, in the coriander population density of 100% of the RDM. The coriander green mass yield and commercial productivity of radish roots optimized in the intercropping were 1.25 and 14.90 t ha-1 when fertilized with 65 t ha-1 of green manures biomass in the coriander population density of 100% RDM.

ABSTRACT The recognition of oocytes, in their maturational stages, allow estimate the ovarian development and the type of spawning of a species. Although, distinguishing oocytes on histological images requires a visual and subjective interpretation by the specialist. With the development of deep learning techniques, automatic object detection has become an important mechanism for this task. However, studies that use deep learning techniques have not been widely explored for the analysis of fish oocyte samples so far. In this paper, we propose the use of YOLO, a family of convolutional neural networks, for oocyte morphology detection of Centropomus undecimalis fish. The research uses an image database with 5,680 oocytes with different maturation stadiums (PV - pre-vitellogenesis, VI - early vitellogenesis and VF - late vitellogenesis), in histological images, divided into training, testing and validation, and detection performed by YOLOv3, YOLOv4, and YOLOv5 architectures. The results obtained were promising, highlighting that the YOLOv5l model, in the detection of oocytes of the VF class, reached the best values in the metrics precision, recall, mAP@.5 and mAP@.95 with 85.4%, 95.3%, 95.7%, and 75.9%, respectively. When considering all classes, YOLOv5l was the model that obtained the best results in the analyzed metrics.

ABSTRACT High soybean grain yield is based on adequate crop management, mainly on disease prevention and control, especially Asian soybean rust (ASR), which causes great crop damage. This study aimed to evaluate the ASR chemical control with different fungicide mixtures in three soybean-producing areas in Brazil during two consecutive crop seasons. Four fungicide treatments [T1: benzovindyflupyr + picoxystrobin, T2: benzovindyflupyr + azoxystrobin, T3: fluxapyroxad + pyraclostrobin, and T4: inpyrfluxam + tebuconazole] were evaluated with five replications. Phytotoxicity damage, ASR disease severity, plant defoliation, 1,000-grain weight, and grain yield were evaluated. The results were relatively consistent among all regions and between the crop seasons, indicating that the treatments have similar responses when applied in diverse conditions. The T3 and T4 treatments presented higher phytotoxicity, lower disease severity, lower plant defoliation, and higher 1,000-grain weight and grain yield. The presence and damage caused by ASR tend to increase after the second soybean crop season in the same area, suggesting a loss of efficiency of the evaluated fungicides.

ABSTRACT Delays in soybean harvesting can limit seed viability and vigor. In this study, soybean cultivar seeds’ physiological and sanitary quality was evaluated in response to harvest delay. The experimental design used was completely randomized blocks, arranged in a split-plot scheme, with three replicates. The plots were represented by the cultivation of two soybean cultivars (BMX Bônus IPRO and BMX Olimpo IPRO), while the subplots were represented by three harvest times [0, 7, 14 days after the seed’s full maturity (stage R8)]. The following characteristics of the physiological and sanitary quality of the seeds were measured: water content, plant emergence, total dry matter, germination, accelerated aging, electrical conductivity, and seed health. The delay in the soybean harvest affects the seeds’ physiological and sanitary quality. Seeds harvested seven days after full maturity have a higher incidence of Aspergillus flavus and Macrophomina sp. In comparison, seeds harvested 14 days after full maturity have a higher incidence of Phomopsis sp. and Fusarium sp.

ABSTRACT Despite having a vast area for agricultural production, Brazil is highly dependent on mineral sources for phosphate fertilisers, making their use unsustainable and highly dependent on the international market. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of different sources of phosphate fertiliser and the depth of application on the development and productivity of maize over two crop seasons. A randomised block design was used in a 3 × 4 factorial scheme comprising 12 treatments, with four replications. Three sources of phosphorus were tested: single superphosphate (SSP), Top-Phos® (TOP-PHOS) and reactive natural phosphate (RNP), in addition to four methods of application (broadcast application [0.00 m] and in-furrow application at three depths [0.05 m, 0.08 m and 0.11 m]). The following parameters were evaluated: final plant stand, plant height, stalk diameter, ear insertion height, number of rows per ear, number of grains per row, 1000-grain weight, and grain productivity. The data were submitted to analysis of variance using the F-test at a level of 5%, and to principal component analysis (PCA) with biplot graphical analysis. The use of SSP and Top-Phos® increased productivity and the ear insertion height compared to the use of RNP. Applications made at a depth of 0.11 m were the most efficient. Seasonal variables affected productivity, with Top-Phos® showing a greater correlation with the yield metrics at greater depths.

ABSTRACT Crop pollination is indispensable for global food security. Studies that summarize the knowledge about pollination of specific crops are relevant because they identify the distribution of pollinators, guide pollinator management and conservation policies, and highlight knowledge gaps. Zucchini is cultivated in several countries, and its production is essentially dependent on pollinators. We aimed to integrate global data on zucchini pollination and answer the following questions: (1) What are the topics addressed and what are the trends of the results? (2) Which organisms pollinate zucchini, and how are they globally distributed? (3) What are the knowledge gaps? We performed a systematic literature review, built a network of countries and pollinators, and compared data on the efficiency of specific pollinators. Studies were conducted in 16 countries. Most studies investigated the frequency and diversity of floral visitors. Other approaches were discussed. Zucchini flowers fed 116 species of pollinators, especially bees. Six countries had almost exclusive groups of native pollinators. Apis, Bombus, and Peponapis were the most frequently recorded bees. Areas with high habitat diversity improve pollination. There was a significant difference in productivity when pollination was carried out by bees compared with pollination by Syrphidae. The main knowledge gaps are (1) the determination of which native, manageable pollinators are efficient for maximum zucchini production, (2) the investigation of how pollination influence fruit nutritional composition and seed quality, and (3) the identification of pollinators to the species level.

ABSTRACT The cultivation and consumption of lentils has been gaining importance in recent years due to the high nutritional value of the grain. Research related to seed technology is therefore important in providing high-quality seeds for the market. The aim o f this study was to adapt the accelerated ageing test and evaluate the potential of FT-NIR spectroscopy for classifying lentil seeds based on physiological potential. Seven batches of lentil seeds were subjected to tests to characterise their physiological potential. The accelerated ageing test included the traditional method (100% RH) with an alternative method using saturated saline solution (76% RH) at 41 °C for 24, 36, 48 and 72 hours. NIR spectra were also obtained, taking 200 spectral readings from each batch that were individually processed for 30 seconds. Following the spectral analysis, the seeds were submitted to tests of germination and accelerated ageing to validate the technique. The PLS-DA technique was employed, using 70% of the data for training and 30% for validation. Different pre-processing methods were used, including the standard normal variate (SNV), multiplicative scatter correction (MSC), and the 1st and 2nd Savitzky-Golay (SG) derivatives. It was concluded that the accelerated ageing test at 41 °C for 48 hours using the traditional method (100% RH) was the most efficient way of evaluating the physiological potential of the lentil seeds. The models derived from the FT-NIR spectral data were 99% accurate in predicting the class of physiological potential of the batches.

ABSTRACT Successive applications of phosphate fertilisers can exceed the phosphorus (P) requirements of plants and soil, resulting in surface accumulation and loss to aquatic systems, and therefore require monitoring. The aim of this study was to determine a mathematical model for the critical limit for phosphorus in the environment (CLPE) in a Red Latosol of the Cerrado, and to monitor the amount of P in the soil of 46 rural properties in the micro watershed of the Ribeirão Abóbora River. Sand was added to a dystroferric Red Latosol to simulate soils with textures of 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% clay, in order to quantify the maximum P adsorption capacity (MPAC) and determine the CLPE. Soil from 46 rural properties that make up the micro watershed of the Ribeirão Abóbora River was collected, and the P and clay content was determined. The MPAC decreased proportionally to the reduction in clay content. Th e estimating equation to determine the CLPE for the Red Latosol of the Cerrado is CLPE = 16.64 + 0.432* (% clay), which can be simplified to CLPE = 20 + 0.5* (% clay). The P content on four of the properties in the micro watershed of the Ribeirão Abóbora River is greater than the CLPE. It is therefore recommended that the use of phosphate sources be suspended until appropriate P levels return, and that close attention be paid to these properties so that P values again reach acceptable levels, and no P is transferred to the water sources.

ABSTRACT The characterisation and evaluation of accessions are important steps in both the management of a germplasm collection and in a plant genetic improvement program. Carrying out characterisation and evaluation, whether morphological or molecular, requires observing the overall features of plants in the field, or collecting leaves for DNA extraction, which is time consuming and costly; whereas DNA extracted directly from the seeds allows access to the genome without the need for planting the seeds, which speeds up the selection of genotypes of interest and information on genetic variability. The aim was to develop a non-destructive method for extracting DNA from cashew seeds. The seeds were mechanically perforated using a mini-grinder, and a sample of the endosperm was removed. Various protocols and commercial kits for DNA extraction were tested, as well as materials to seal the opening made in the seed. It is possible to extract cashew tree DNA from the endosperm, preferably using commercial kits with cementitious adhesive as the sealing material, offering a germination percentage of 60% of the perforated seeds. program molecular field costly variability nondestructive non destructive minigrinder, minigrinder mini grinder, grinder mini-grinder removed tested seed material 60 6

ABSTRACT The correct use of tyres on agricultural tractors, in respect of the terrain and the type and internal pressure of the tyre, are factors that influence the performance of the tractor. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the operating performance of an agricultural tractor fitted with two types of traction device (radial and diagonal tyres) at different pressures, and operating on soil with two levels of moisture. The experiment was conducted on a dystrophic Red Yellow Argisol, with tests to evaluate the performance of the tyres under specific working conditions. Tractive power and tractive force, wheel slip and fuel consumption were evaluated. For each of the conditions under evaluation, the radial configuration showed better performance than the diagonal configuration, the effect being more significant at the lower pressure and under low soil moisture. The use of radial tyres led to an increase in traction capacity and drawbar power, with a reduction in fuel consumption, especially at higher slip rates. tractors tyre pressures moisture Argisol force evaluated evaluation rates

ABSTRACT Cobalt (Co) and molybdenum (Mo) are essential elements with a fundamental role in biological nitrogen fixation in legumes. Vitamins such as thiamine, despite being required in small quantities, influence plant growth. This study aimed to assess the efficiency of different doses of thiamine applied as seed treatment, combined or not with Co and Mo, in enhancing the development of soybean crops. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse according to a randomized block design with a 6 × 2 factorial arrangement, comprising six thiamine doses (0, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 200 mg kg-1) in the presence or absence of Co and Mo at the recommended rate of 100 mL ha-1. At 40 days after sowing, plants were analyzed for root length, root dry weight, shoot length, shoot dry weight, nodule number, and nodule dry weight. Principal component analysis showed that combined application of Co and Mo with thiamine was negatively associated with all variables and that the thiamine doses most positively associated with the analyzed variables were 50 and 200 mg kg-1. In treatments containing thiamine alone, there was a linear direct relationship between thiamine dose and nodule dry weight. Root and shoot lengths and dry weights were highest in plants treated with thiamine only at a dose of 122 mg kg-1. Application of Co and Mo combined with thiamine via seed treatment does not promote the development of soybean crops. Thiamine application is a promising treatment to increase shoot length, root dry weight, and nodule dry weight in soybean. (Co (Mo legumes quantities growth crops arrangement 0, 0 (0 10 25 20 kg1 kg 1 kg-1 ha1. ha1 ha 1. ha-1 4 sowing length number 5 kg1. alone 12 ( kg- ha-

ABSTRACT The development of aquaculture through the cultivation of what are considered unconventional species is an option with the potential to solve the problem of food scarcity. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the zootechnical performance of juvenile Pomacea haustrum fed different commercial diets, and subjected to different levels of salinity. After seven P. haustrum spawn had hatched in the laboratory, the juveniles were randomly selected and transferred to the rearing containers. Two different commercial diets were offered: rabbit feed with a high proportion of ingredients rich in crude vegetable protein (VP), and dog food containing balanced levels of ingredients rich in crude vegetable and animal protein (MP). The selected juveniles were randomly stocked at different salinities (0, 2 and 4 parts per thousand - ppt). The experiment lasted 65 days. Twenty-one hours after the start of the experiment, 100% of the individuals reared at a salinity of 4 ppt had died. There was a significant difference (p ≤ 0.05) between the results for zootechnical performance (average final weight, weight gain, average final growth, specific growth rate, protein efficiency and apparent feed conversion) for animals reared in fresh water or at a salinity of 2 ppt, regardless of the type of diet. The origin of the protein in the diet had no significant effect on the zootechnical performance of the individuals; however, the salinity of the water impaired development of the animals in direct proportion to its concentration. scarcity P laboratory containers offered VP, VP , (VP) MP. MP . (MP) 0, 0 (0 ppt. ppt) 6 days Twentyone Twenty one 100 died p 0.05 005 05 gain rate conversion however concentration (VP (MP ( 10 0.0 00 1 0.