Maturação fisiológica e coleta de sementes de Eugenia uniflora L. (Pitanga), Santa Maria, RS

Abstract

This study aimed to accompany the physiologic maturation, their indicative parameters and to identify the moment adapted for the seed harvest of Eugenia uniflora, evaluating the incidence of fungi in fruits and seeds. The research was carried out from August to October of 2004 in Santa Maria, RS. Samples of fruits and seeds were collected weekly, from three main trees, with beginning to the seven days after the anthesis (DAA) and end to the 77 DAA. The observed variables were: length, diameter, weight and sanity of fruits and seeds and moisture content, dry mass and germination of the seeds. The appropriate time for the seed harvest, in the period and place being studied, occurred between 56 and 63 DAA, when the fruits presented red coloration and the seeds high germination. In that period, the size and the weight of fruits and seeds reached their maximum values and the moisture content and dry mass of the seeds showed tendency to the stabilization. The fungi Cladosporium sp. and Alternaria sp. presented the largest incidence taxes in the fruits and in the seeds and they can influence the seedling production of Eugenia uniflora.