PERDAS E DESEMPENHO DE SEMENTES DE MILHO EM DOIS SISTEMAS DE PREPARO DO SOLO E VELOCIDADES DE DESLOCAMENTO DA COLHEDORA

Significant losses can occur during mechanized harvesting of grains, reducing productivity andprofitability, which can cause serious financial losses to the producer. The aim of this study was to evaluate lossesand performance of maize in two tillage systems and five speeds of the harvester. The study was carried out in a 0.8ha area of the Department of Agricultural Engineering, FCAV, Unesp (Universidade Estadual Paulista). A randomizedblock design (split plot) was used,,with plots consisting of two tillage systems (conventional and no-tillage system)and the subplots of five speeds of harvester, with three replications per treatment. Maize samples were collected by aharvester and water content was determined at field and laboratory. Subsequently, mechanical damage, germination,vigor (accelerated aging and electrical conductivity) and seedling emergence at field were evaluated. It was found thatthe total losses of maize, the germination test on paper and sand, the emergence speed index, the tetrazolium test andseedling dry weight were not affected by any of the treatments. Forward speed affected losses in maize harvesting andgermination in the cold test and accelerated aging test.