Sobrevivência e crescimento de Schizachyrium tenerum (Poaceae) sob diferentes substratos e ambientes

Abstract

The grassland formations of the Brazilian Cerrado suffer intense degradation due to various anthropogenic activities, making the recovery of these areas extremely important for restoring environmental quality. The use of plants with a different size than that naturally found before degradation, or the planting of invasive species in areas to be recovered, can further aggravate the environmental damage already present. Knowledge about efficient methods of propagation of native grasses is extremely important for taking advantage of the vast richness of species that occurs in the Cerrado, however, there is a large gap in knowledge. Therefore, studies that maximize the efficiency in the production of native grass seedlings are necessary. The present study tested the survival and growth of the native grass Schizachyrium tenerum through division of clumps. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse using soil from cerrado stricto sensu and quartzitic rocky field with and without the addition of limestone and NPK, for 120 days. The survival of S. tenerum was also compared when cultivated in a greenhouse and directly in the field, in full sun. S. tenerum seedlings showed greater survival, total growth, number of tillers, and biomass accumulation when cultivated in cerrado soil and cerrado with added limestone, compared to the other treatments (cerrado + limestone + NPK, quartzitic rocky field, quartzitic rocky field + limestone, quartzitic rocky field + limestone + NPK). The survival of the grass was 3 times greater when cultivated in a greenhouse compared to full sun. These results demonstrate that the vegetative propagation method through clump division was efficient for the production of S. tenerum seedlings, especially in cerrado soil. Furthermore, it demonstrates a high potential for using the technique for the recovery of degraded areas.