Phytosociological survey of weeds in pitaya production area

Abstract

The pitaya has gained prominence in the exotic fruit market in Brazil, however, several factors limit productivity, among them, the interference caused by weeds. In this context, the identification of weed population dynamics is the first step towards the adoption of integrated management, contributing to efficient and sustainable control, and can be carried out through a phytosociological survey. The objective of this work was to identify and quantify the floristic composition of weeds in a pitaya orchard, in the first year of implementation, in the municipality of Rio Largo, Alagoas, Brazil. Phytosociology was carried out 120 days after planting, using a hollow square 0.50 m wide, the species were collected, identified, counted and placed in an oven at 65 °C. The following indices were calculated: density, relative density, frequency, relative frequency, importance value index, abundance, relative abundance, dry mass, relative dry mass and relative importance index. The community of weeds showed considerable diversity, with 24 species distributed in 12 botanical families, with Poaceae and Asteraceae having the highest occurrences. It was observed that the species Cenchrus echinatus, Ageratum conyzoides, Galinsoga parviflora, Eleusine indica and Eclipta alba had the highest abundance class, index of relative importance value, and should be the main species for control.