GRAVIMETRIC ANALYSIS IN TOMATO SEEDLINGS SUBMITTED TO SUBSTRATES BASED ON CURTUME SLUDGE AND COFFEE CHAFF

Abstract

The use of agro-industrial waste is not very recurrent, in view of its economic viability and contribution to the environment. Tannery sludge is a waste that has potential for use in agriculture, due to the amounts of organic matter and nutrients, and the coffee grinder can be an ally in promoting an alternative substrate for the production of vegetable seedlings. Therefore, the objective was to evaluate the effects of substrates, containing different proportions of tannery sludge and coffee grinder, on the gravimetric characteristics of tomato seedlings. The experiment was carried out in a randomized block design, with 480 seedlings being produced. Gravimetric analyzes of tomato seedlings were performed 26 days after sowing. The sodium content contained in the tannery sludge, possibly negatively affected the behavior of the fresh and dry masses of the seedlings, due to the increasing addition of this residue in the substrates. On the other hand, it is indicated that nitrogen, made available by the high proportions of coffee grinders, sustained the largest production of phytomass. However, the addition of up to 20% of tannery sludge to the coffee grinder, promoted phytomass gains in tomato seedlings, as well as the use of commercial substrate, proving to be a favorable application from an agricultural and sustainability point of view, by employing of tanning industries a suitable problem.