<b>Health and physiological quality of <em>Amburana cearensis</em> A.C. Smith seeds subjected to thermotherapy and chemical treatment</b> - doi: 10.4025/actasciagron.v33i1.5645

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effectiveness of thermotherapy in the control of fungi associated with seeds of cumaru (Amburana cearensis A.C. Smith) from two localities, after thermal and chemical treatment. The health assessment was conducted by the method of incubation on paper filter (Blotter Test) and physiological quality seeds was determined by germination tests and electrical conductivity. The thermal treatment was used by immersion in water heated to 60 degrees for 5, 10 and 20 minutes. The chemical treatment was done with Captan fungicide. The study used 100 seeds per treatment (10 seeds per petri dish), which were incubated for seven days, at a temperature of 22 ± 2°C and 12-hour photoperiod. The qualitative and quantitative assessment (expressed in percentage) of the fungi associated with the seeds was done with the help of a stereoscope. In the examined samples, only the Aspergillus niger fungus was found. There was a higher incidence of A. niger in the lot from the town of Catolé Rocha, Paraíba State, with very low incidence of the fungus in the town Petrolina, Pernambuco State. The treatments with the best results were fungicide and thermotherapy for 20 minutes.