Growth and Production of Millet Irrigated With Dilutions of Treated Gray Water

The present work aimed to analyze the effects of the application of dilutions of treated gray water (TGW) in well water (WW) on growth and production of millet cv. Ceará (Pennisetum glaucum). The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse, on the department of agronomic and forestry sciences, at the Federal Rural University of the Semi-Arid (UFERSA), Mossoró, RN, Brazil. The experimental design was randomized blocks with five treatments and six replications, totaling thirty plots. The experiment was carried out in vases with volume of 25L containing four plants per vase. The treatments consisted in five dilutions of TGW in WW: T1—100% WW plus 0% TGW; T2—75% WW plus 25% TGW; T3—50% WW plus 50% TGW; T4—25% WW plus 75% TGW and T5—0% WW plus 100% TGW. During the experiment it was analyzed the attributes of plant height, number of tillers, number of leaves, stem diameter and total fresh and dry matters. With the results, it was observed that the exclusive irrigation with TGW (T5) promoted better millet development. As the concentrations of TGW increased in dilutions, also increased plant height, number of leaves and tillers. The rise in the number of leaves is associated to the rise in height and tillers, and those are associated to the rise in stem diameter and fresh matter, resulting in better accumulations of dry matter and showing the viability of gray water use to improve forage production and increasing potable water availability to multiple uses.