CROP YIELD OF CONILON COFFEE PLANTS OF DIFFERENT LEVELS OF VEGETATIVE VIGOR AND RUST SEVERITY

Resumo

The breeding programs have sought to provide rust-resistant cultivars, since the genetic control is the most economical and efficient method of management of this plant disease. This study investigated the relationship between the rust severity, vigor and crop yield capacity of conilon coffee plants. The experiment was conducted in the Experimental Farm of Bananal do Norte (INCAPER), located in Cachoeito de Itapemirim, in the southern state of Espírito Santo. The crop yield was evaluated in 20 combinations of 4 levels of vigor and 5 levels of rust severity. The experimental design used was in randomized blocks, with four replications and 5 plants per plot. There was the formation of five groups of homogeneous means for the combinations and the means was adjusted to a response surface model. The combinations between the levels of vigor and rust severity influenced the crop yield of conilon coffee in the evaluated conditions. The vegetative vigor factor was the more limiting than the rust severity in determining the coffee plants yield.