Effect of Plant Density on Yield and Yield Components of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.) in the Semi Arid Region of Brazil

Abstract

Cowpea cultivation is of great importance for farmers who work in this agricultural activity, in this sense, we evaluated the agronomic characteristics of cowpea {Vigna unguiculata (L.)} Creole cultivar (Semper verde), in the semi-arid region of Brazil. The experiment was carried out from November 2021 to February 2022 at the Rafael Fernandes experimental farm, in the district of Alagoinha (5º03'37 "S, 37º23'50" W), northwest of Mossoró, State of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, with an area of 400 hectares. A randomized complete block design was used with five treatments, which will consist of planting densities (35,714; 71,428; 107,142; 142,856 and 17,8570 plants ha-1) with four replications. Each plot consisted of dimensions of 5.0 m x 4.0 m, with six rows of 5.0 m in length, with a total area of 20.0 m2. The spacing used between rows was 0.70 m, while intra-row spacing was 0.40m. The characteristics evaluated were: pod length, expressed in cm (PL), number of grains, expressed in pod-1 units (NG), Pod weight, expressed in grams (PW), number of grains, expressed in pod-1 units (NG), Weight of 100 grains, expressed in grams (P100G) and grain production, expressed in kg ha-1 (PG) of cowpea, Creole cultivar (Sempre verde).Planting densities contributed greatly to cowpea productivity, with productivity of 184.82 kg ha-1, at a density of 142,856 plants ha-1. The cowpea cultivar (Semper Verde) is agronomically viable for planting in the semi-arid region.