Diversidade de variedades de feijão-caupi e diagnóstico do sistema de produção agropecuário de comunidades rurais do Sertão Central do estado do Ceará

Abstract

The objective of the present work was to perform a diagnosis of the production system of small producers of two rural communities in the state of Ceará and to evaluate different varieties of cowpea for morphoagronomic characterization. For this purpose, the system of production of small farmers in the rural communities of Maraquetá, in Quixeramobim and Riacho do Meio, in Choró, municipalities in the state of Ceará, was surveyed. In the morphoagronomic characterization, a total of 45 varieties of cowpea were evaluated, of these, twenty-nine are creole seeds and sixteen are varieties belonging to the UFC germplasm bank. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected for the morphoagronomic characterization, where multivariate statistical methods were applied and for the descriptive rural statistical diagnosis. As far as the qualitative characterization of the 45 varieties, nine presented average Euclidean genetic distance of (0), that is, none of these characteristics are different; On the other hand, four varieties have degree of similarity (1), not having any of the similar characteristics. For the quantitative characterization the pairs 42x26 and 43x22 presented, respectively, smaller and greater similarity. Varieties with greater genetic distance are of utmost importance in genetic improvement because they allow allelic combinations that result in superior genotypes and, consequently, the launching of new promising cultivars in the market. In the diagnosis of the farmers of the Maraquetá community 43% of the producers report that the greatest difficulty for production is the drought and 42.86% the lack of recourse by the government; For subsistence products, 46% grow beans and maize and 26% livestock, and 57% sell products when there is a surplus. In the community of Riacho do Meio in addition to the drought that 61.54% of farmers reported, agricultural pests also became problems for 30.77% of them; As for subsistence products, 46% only grow beans and 29% beans and corn, where 57% of producers sell products only when there is a surplus.