Seasonality of fruit production of Euterpe oleracea and E. precatoria açaí palm trees cultivated in the metropolitan region of Manaus (AM)

The off-season period for açaí palm production cause social and economic problems that affect producers and consumers. Two species are used for açaí pulp production, Euterpe oleracea and E. precatoria. These species have some distinct characteristics, including the harvest period. The cultivation of açaí palm is expanding in the metropolitan region of Manaus, state of Amazonas, AM, and there are no studies on the harvest period of these species under cultivated conditions in this region. The objective of this study was to evaluate the reproductive phenophases of the açaí palm E. oleracea and E. precatoria grown in the metropolitan region of Manaus, state of Amazonas and to check the harvest period of these species in this region. The reproductive phenophases were evaluated during 24 consecutive months in 20 plants of each species. E. oleracea emitted a greater number of inflorescences from January to July (76%), during the rainy season, and presented a greater number of mature bunches (56%) from October to December, at the end of the dry season. E. precatoria emitted the highest number of inflorescences (70%) from July to November, during the dry season, and the highest proportion of mature bunches (49%) was observed between May and July, at the end of the rainy season. The species presented different harvest periods, so the cultivation of both can contribute to reducing the off-season period of açaí fruit production in the metropolitan region of Manaus, AM.