Shading and slow release fertiliser affect early growth in seedlings of Pau-marfim

1Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Boa Vista, RR, Brasil 2Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Departamento de Agricultura, Areia, PB, Brasil 3Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Campus Capão do Leão, Pelotas, RS, Brasil 4Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina, Ciências Agrárias, Lages, SC, Brasil 5Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Departamento de Agricultura, Bananeiras, PB, Brasil 6Universidade Federal de Roraima, Boa Vista, RR, Brasil Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate the initial growth of Agonandra brasiliensis Miers ex Benth. & Hook. F. in response to different levels of shading and doses of controlled-release fertiliser (CRF). The experiment was conducted at Embrapa Roraima in Boa Vista, in a completely randomised experimental design and a 2 x 5 factorial scheme, of two luminosity levels (50 and 30%) and five doses of CRF (formulation 18-05-09, NPK) (0, 0.5, 1, 2 and 3 g L-1 substrate), with five replications, each consisting of five plants. At 240 days after transplanting, the growth characteristics were evaluated, and the influence of the light levels and the CRF dose was recorded on these characteristics, either individually or interactively. It is suggested that plants of Agonandra brasiliensis be fertilised with a dose of 2 g L-1 CRF and grown in an environment with 50% of luminosity to maximize growth and efficiency in the production of high-quality seedlings.