Bank of seeds of spontaneous plants after corn cultivation under cover of babassu straw

Abstract

The objective of this research was to analyze qualitative and quantitative aspects of the seed
bank of spontaneous plants before and after cultivation of green corn under cover of babassu
straw. Soil sampling was performed before and after the implementation of the experiment in
an area of the State University of Maranhão. There were 40 trays arranged in a greenhouse
whose emergence occurred at 15, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90 days after implantation of the experiment.
The density, frequency and importance value index were calculated. Before cultivation,
2049 individuals emerged in two families of the Monocotyledons and eight of the Eudicots. After
cultivation there were 118 in two families of Monocotyledons and five of Eudicots. Babassu
straw had a suppressive effect on the spontaneous plants, mainly on the eudicots. Babassu
straw reduced the number of individuals in the Cyperaceae family whose species of highest
importance was Cyperus rotundus.