Alelopatia de Baccharis dracunculifolia DC. sobre a germinação e desenvolvimento de espécies cultivadas

Abstract

Secondary metabolites produced in some plant species can cause developmental changes in other plants or even in other organisms. The objective of this work was to identify the possible allelopathic effects of the aqueous extracts of Baccharis dracunculifolia leaves in the germination and growth of seedlings of Brassica campestris, B. oleracea cv. Capitata, Citrullus lanatus, Eruca sativa, Lactuca sativa cv. Branca Boston, L. sativa cv. Grand Rapids, L. sativa cv. Simpson, Lycopersicum esculentum, Raphanus sativus and Zea mays. The aqueous extracts were made out of dried leaves at 1 g 10 mL-1 (p/v) concentration and by using seven of those aqueous extract concentrations (100, 90, 70, 50, 30, 10 and 0%), arranged into a completely randomized design, with five repetitions often seeds of each cultivated species. The aqueous extracts of B. dracunculifolia revealed allelopathic potential in the germination of seeds and in the growth of the aerial part of the root system in all tested species, while the reduction in germination and initial growth intensified with the increase in the concentrations of the aqueous extracts used. The results indicate the existence of allelopathic potential in B. dracunculifolia.