Vegetative growth of the coffee plant (Coffea arabica L.) and its correlation with the production in narrower spacing - DOI: 10.4025/actasciagron.v29i4.404

Abstract

In density plantings, morphological and physiological changes occur in coffee plants. Aiming at understanding such changes, morpho-vegetative characters of the cultivars IAC 44, IAC 99, MG 1192, Katipó, MG 6851 and UFV 3880 were evaluated at different spacings between the rows (1.0; 1.5; 2.0 and 2.5 m) and at a 0.75 m spacing between the plants. The plots consisted of 4 rows of 4.50 m length. The experiment was carried out in a factorial 4 (spacings between rows) x 6 (cultivars) with 6 replications in a randomized block design. After 20 and 33 months of planting, the following aspects were evaluated: plant height, cup maximum diameter, stem diameter, plagiotropic branches number, leaf area index and plant yield. The data were submitted to correlation tests among vegetative characters and production by means of trail analysis. After 20 months, the evaluation showed that the vegetative characteristics of the plant were not influenced by spacing. After 33 months, the evaluation showed that plants were higher at shorter spaces between rows. Conclusion points that plant yield was well-explained by the growth characteristics of the plants.