Influence of propagule node number and planting frame on the growth of Trichanthera gigantea

Abstract

In order to evaluate the growth of Trichanthera gigantea plants two experiments were conducted, the first one under nursery conditions, in which propagules with different number of nodes were used; and a second trial was carried out under field conditions, with two planting frames. In the first one a completely randomized design was used and in the second the design consisted in randomized blocks. The T. gigantea propagules with three nodes provided a higher amount of shoots per stake (6), with a higher length (4,27 cm). In the field, after 11 months, plants taller than 160 cm and with many branches were obtained. The leaves reached 24 cm long and 12 cm wide, independently from the planting frame used. In the 0,75 m2 -frame, yields of 533 kg DM/ha for the leaves and of 373,0 kg DM/ha for the fresh stems were observed, which was highly significant in comparison with the 1,0 m2 - frame (213 and 135 kg DM/ha for the leaves and fresh stems, respectively). It is concluded that it is possible to use stakes of T. gigantea plants with different number of nodes for the establishment in nursery, although the propagules with three nodes provided a higher amount of shoots. Likewise, the use of a 0,75 m2 -plantation frame allowed to obtain higher yields in dry foliage as compared to the 1,0 m2 -frame; therefore, to use propagules with three nodes and a planting frame of 0,75 m2 for the propagation of T. gigantea is recommended.