Phenological reproductive pattern of the Attalea speciosa mart ex spreng. In pasture area in the central region of Rondônia

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the phenology of the babassu (Attalea speciosa Mart ex Spreng.), aiming to subsidize information for non - timber management of the species in pasture area. For 48 months, the phenological patterns of babassu were studied, relating them to meteorological variables such as monthly average temperature, monthly total precipitation, relative humidity of the medium air and photoperiod. A total of 130 adult palm trees from natural regeneration were monitored in a pasture in the municipality of Ji-Paraná, RO, from January 2012 to December 2015. The data were analyzed by means of the activity indexes, the relation of the phenophases and meteorological variables by means of Pearson correlation. The population synchrony index was also evaluated. During the study, the population of Attalea speciosa showed flowering asynchronously in the population. In the process of formation and maturation of the fruits of the babassu, it was possible to observe that the time of total development of the fruits was in average 254 days. In young infructescence, the most influential climatic factors were temperature and photoperiod. In the green infructescence, climatic factors such as precipitation, relative humidity and photoperiod influenced negatively. The presence of mature infructescence occurred throughout the year, with the highest intensities in the month of November, and its activity related to the increase in temperature and duration of days. Phenological monitoring of babassu allowed to identify the intensity and predictability of reproductive events, thus enabling information to be provided to the plans for the sustainable exploitation of the species in pasture in the municipality of Ji-Paraná.