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The conservation of the cut flower stems aims to prolong durability, maintain the quality and reduce the losses after harvest, providing a greater period of lifespan and commercialization. Thus, the objective of this work was to evaluate the quality and durability in post-harvest of fresh safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) flower stems harvested in different times and submitted to different preservative solutions. The experiment was conducted in entirely randomized design and, organized in 4x8 (four preservative solutions and eight harvest seasons) factorial scheme, with four repetitions, and each experimental unit consisting of five floral stems. The cultivation of floral stems of safflower occurred at Floriculture Sector and the harvest seasons of them were carried out in the beginning of flowering from the sowing performed in the first seasonal half: in winter, spring and summer of 2016, autumn, winter, spring and summer of 2017 and autumn of 2018. And, the preservative solutions were: distilled water (control); distilled water + sucrose 2%; distilled water + sodium hypochlorite 2% and distilled water + sucrose 2% + sodium hypochlorite 2%. The floral stems were evaluated in relation to quality notes, dehydration and absorption of preservative solutions. We observed that the floral stems of safflower presented shelf life in average of nine days, with absorption of solution in average of 0.021 mL day-1 g-1 of fresh mass and that the use of preservatives was not beneficial to conservation in post-harvest.

The objective was to evaluate the physiological and sanitary quality of cockscomb seeds stored for different periods. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design, with a 2x5 factorial scheme (two species of cockscomb: Celosia argentea L. and Celosia cristata L., and five seed lots with different storage periods: 0, 4, 8, 12 and 16 years, from the date of harvest) with four replicates. After harvesting each batch of seeds, in their respective years, they were stored with an average moisture content of 11% and average germination of 98% in cold chamber in packages of Kraft paper (15 ºC and 40% RH). It was observed that the average vigor (first count of germination) of the seeds of the two species of cockscomb was 88%, and the average germination of normal seedlings was 89 and 96% for the C. argentea and C. cristata species, respectively, with mean germination of 2.9 days for all storage periods. The relative frequency demonstrated homogeneity in the germination of the two species of cockscomb maintaining germinative viability in all periods of storage. It is concluded that the physiological potential and sanitary quality of the seeds of the C. argentea and C. cristata were preserved for periods ranging from zero to sixteen years of storage.

Germination is the result of the triggering of various processes occurred in the seed, which are influenced by the environmental conditions, especially light and temperature. In this way, the objective of the present study was to evaluate the influence of different temperatures and photoblastic on the germination of cockscomb seeds. The experiment was carried out in a completely randomizeddesign, with a 2 x 5 factorial scheme (two lighting regimes and five temperatures), with four replicates of 50 seeds, for two species of cockscomb (Celosia argentea L. and C. cristata L.). The lighting regimes were with absence (dark continuous) and the presence of light (photoperiod of 24 h), and temperatures were constant at 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 ºC. The seed lots of the two species of cockscomb were cultivated in 2012 and stored in a cold chamber (15 ºC and 40% RH), with an average moisture content of 11% and a mean germination of 98%. The results of the laboratory tests indicated that the two species of cockscomb presented fast germination in average 2.5 and 4.5 days for the regimes with presence and absence of illumination, respectively, characterizing as neutral photoblastic species. However, it was observed that the temperature is a limiting factor for the germination of the two species of cockscomb, having its optimal thermal range between 20 and 30 ºC.

Minimizing the harmful effects of copper (Cu) in the soil, using plants are slow and gradual, requiring the identification of species with fitorremediativa fitness for this process. Thus, the present work had as objective to evaluate the cultivation of chrysanthemum cv. Dark Fiji in soil added with Cu as promising phytoremediation. The experiment was conducted in the period from July to December 2014, in the greenhouse of the Floriculture UFSM. In a completely randomized experimental design, with five treatments composed of doses of Cu added to the soil, in the amounts of 250, 500, 750 and 1,000 mg kg-1 and control (without addition), with five replications. In two crop cycles both with duration of 104 days from the production of seedlings to harvest. Chrysanthemum cuttings were obtained from cuttings collected in the garden clonal itself, with 8 cm long, rooted in commercial substrate and transplanted into containers containing soil. They evaluated phytotechnical parameters and translocation factors of aerial part of bioaccumulation and bioconcentration factor of Cu in plant roots and metal extraction rate. It was observed that at all doses of Cu added to the soil, the plants showed low plant development and floriferous affecting its aesthetic quality in both crop cycles. The high accumulation of Cu in the roots is indicative of growing tolerance, cv. Dark Fiji in areas with excess of this, with phytoremediation potential.

The experiments were performed at the Department of Floriculture of UFSM from August 2013 to May 2014 in two experimental phases. The first experiment aimed to verify rooting Euryops chrysanthemoides in different concentrations of IBA, in a randomized block design, evaluated the number and length of roots. In the second experiment the different plant densities of E. chrysanthemoides pot (1, 2, 3 or 4 plants) in a completely randomized design and analyzed for the number of branches, number of buttons, number of open flowers and drought were evaluated, the average height of the branches, the middle notes of floral stems and closing the height of the vase. Observed a greater number and length of roots in 1.000 mg L-1 IBA. The density of four plants per pot is recommended to number 15.

The present study aimed to diagnose the flowers retail market and ornamental plants in Santa Maria, RS, Brazil, by means of a research in loco, from January to June of 2013, based on questionnaires and interviews applied to the managers of the establishment, as well as of an application of a visual and phytosanitary scale to other establishments that sell flowers and ornamental plants, such as agricultural shops, fairs of horticultural products, supermarkets and providers of funeral services - cemeteries and funeral homes. The diagnosis aims to know the steps of the dynamics observed from the market of flowers until the final consumer, and to segment the types of floricultures, distinguishing them according to the commercial focus — floricultures of arrangements and bouquets, and producing flowers and landscape floricultures. Based on the diagnosis it can be concluded that the Santa Maria retail flowers and ornamental plants follows the national trend of floral arrangements and bouquets shops, with the increase of the companies focused on landscaping and gardening. Among the most marketed plants are the rose as the best-selling cut flower, the begonia as potted flower, the fern for foliage arrangements, the cactus as potted plant, the raffia as garden plant and the pansy as the best-selling plant in boxes.

As áreas arborizadas existentes no contexto urbano contribuem significativamente para a melhoria da qualidade de vida da sociedade. Diagnosticar essas áreas é importante para a elaboração do planejamento da arborização de umacidade. Assim, o objetivo do trabalho foi identificar, por meio de um inventário, e diagnosticar a qualidade das espécies vegetais no bairro Nossa Senhora das Dores em Santa Maria, RS, realizado no período de fevereiro a abril de 2010. Foram encontradas 99 espécies botânicas distribuídas em 47 famílias, sendo o bairro considerado com ampla diversidade vegetal. As espécies Lagerstroemia indica L., Tipuana tipu (Benth.)Kuntze e Syagrus romanzoffiana (Cham.) Glassman apresentaram maior frequência nas vias. Verificou-se a presença de várias espécies inadequadas à arborização das calçadas, como Ficus benjamina L., Inga marginata Willd., Hovenia dulcis Thunb., Melia azedarach L., entre outras. Sugere-se uma adequação e renovação de algumas espécies para o bairro Nossa Senhora das Dores a fim de proporcionar aos moradores um melhor aproveitamento do verde urbano.