ECOPHYSIOLOGY OF WEST INDIAN CHERRY IRRIGATED WITH SALINE WATER UNDER PHOSPHORUS AND NITROGEN DOSES

The quantitative and qualitative scarcity of water resources is a frequent problem in the semi-arid region of the Brazilian Northeast. The availability of water for irrigation with high content of dissolved salts is common, affecting the growth and development of the crops. Thus, it is necessary to adopt strategies that allow the establishment of irrigated agriculture in this region. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of water salinity and phosphorus/nitrogen combinations on the ecophysiology of the West Indian cherry grafted in the first year of cultivation. The research was carried out in a protected environment, in lysimeters filled with a Regolithic Neosol of loamy clay texture, having low initial phosphorus content. The experiment was arranged in a randomized block design, arranged in a 5x4 factorial scheme, with five levels of electrical conductivity of the irrigation water - ECw (0.6, 1.4, 2.2, 3.0 and 3.8 dS m(-1)) and four managements of fertilization with phosphorus and nitrogen (100:100; 140:100; 100:140 and 140:140% P/N of the recommendation), with three replications, each plot consisting of one plant. Increased salinity of irrigation water reduced growth, photosynthesis and the production of West Indian cherry. Fertilization with 140% of recommendation of the phosphorus and nitrogen minimizes the deleterious effect of salinity on West Indian cherry irrigated with water up to 3.0 dS m(-1).