SALINE WATER IRRIGATION AND NITROGEN FERTILIZATION ON THE CULTIVATION OF COLORED FIBER COTTON

ABSTRACT In Northeast Brazil, the cultivation of colored fiber cotton has stood out as one of the agricultural activities of expressive importance because its fiber has various applications in the industry and it is a labor-demanding crop. In this context, this study aimed to evaluate the growth, water consumption, water use efficiency and production of the colored fiber cotton cv. ‘BRS Rubi’, as a function of saline water irrigation and nitrogen (N) doses. The experiment was conducted in lysimeters, under greenhouse conditions, in eutrophic Regolithic Neosol, with a sandy loam texture, in Campina Grande-PB, Brazil. The plants were irrigated using water with electrical conductivities (ECw) of 5.1, 6.1, 7.1, 8.1 and 9.1 dS m-1 and fertilized with N doses (ND) of 65, 100, 135, 170 and 205 mg N kg-1 soil, in a completely randomized block design, with three replicates. Irrigation using water with an ECw above 5.1 dS m-1, hampered growth, water consumption and water use efficiency of ‘BRS Rubi’ cotton. Among the organs, the cotton root system was less affected by the salt stress in comparison to the shoots. N fertilization did not mitigate the deleterious effect of salt stress on cotton growth, water consumption, water use efficiency and production. The interaction between water salinity and N fertilization had positive effects on total weight of seeds and lint, and the highest values were obtained in plants irrigated with water of ECw 7.6 and 7.5 dS m-1 and ND of 65 mg N kg-1 of soil. RESUMO No Nordeste do Brasil, a cotonicultura de fibra colorida tem se destacado como uma das atividades agrícolas de expressiva importância, devido a sua fibra possuir várias aplicações na indústria, e ser uma cultura absorvedora de mão-de-obra. Neste contexto, objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar o crescimento, o consumo hídrico, a eficiência no uso da água e a produção do algodoeiro cv. BRS Rubi de fibra colorida em função da irrigação com águas salinas e doses de nitrogênio, em experimento desenvolvido em lisímetros sob condições de casa de vegetação em Neossolo Regolítico Eutrófico de textura franco-arenosa em Campina Grande-PB. As plantas foram irrigadas com água de condutividade elétrica da água - CEa de 5,1; 6,1; 7,1; 8,1 e 9,1 dS m-1 e adubadas com doses de nitrogênio - DN de 65; 100; 135; 170 e 205 mg de N kg-1 de solo, no delineamento em blocos inteiramente casualizados, com três repetições. A irrigação com águas de CEa acima de 5,1 dS m-1 prejudicou o crescimento, o