RAMULARIA LEAF SPOT AND BOLL ROT ARE AFFECTED DIFFERENTLY BY ORGANIC AND INORGANIC NITROGEN FERTILIZATION IN COTTON PLANTS

Abstract

IN THIS WORK, THE INTERACTION AMONG NITROGEN FERTILIZATION USING BOVINE MANURE, POULTRY MANURE, JATROPHA CURCAS SEED CAKE AND UREA, AND THE DISEASES RAMULARIA LEAF SPOT (RLS) AND BOLL ROT (BR), CAUSED BY RAMULARIOPSIS PSEUDOGLYCINES AND DIPLODIA GOSSYPINA, RESPECTIVELY, ON COTTON PLANTS (GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM L.), WAS STUDIED UNDER FIELD CONDITIONS. THE INTENSITY (INCIDENCE AND SEVERITY IN PERCENTAGE) OF RLS AND THE INCIDENCE (%) OF BR WERE EVALUATED OVER TIME, STARTING IN THE REPRODUCTIVE STAGE B1 (FIRST VISIBLE FLOWER BUD). A RANDOMIZED COMPLETE BLOCK DESIGN WITH A 4X4 FACTORIAL ARRANGEMENT WAS USED (FERTILIZERS X DOSE), TOTALING 16 TREATMENTS WITH FOUR REPLICATIONS. THE DISEASE PROGRESS WAS ANALYZED WITH THE NONLINEAR LOGISTIC AND GOMPERTZ MODELS, OBTAINING THE EPIDEMIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS AMOUNT OF INITIAL DISEASE (Y0) AND PROGRESS RATE (R). PLANTS FERTILIZED WITH 50 KG N HA-1, PRESENTED AN INCIDENCE TWICE HIGHER THAN THOSE OBTAINED WITH OTHER FERTILIZERS. THE LOGISTIC MODEL BETTER FITS RLS, BUT NO MODEL COULD REPRESENT BR. ONLY THE RLS EPIDEMIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS WERE AFFECTED DIFFERENTLY IN THIS EXPERIMENT COMPARED TO BR DISEASE. THE POSSIBLE ROLE OF ORGANIC AND INORGANIC NITROGEN FERTILIZATION IN THE RLS AND BR MANAGEMENT IS DISCUSSED.