MORPHOMETRY AND PRODUCTION OF MAIZE INOCULATED WITH Azospirillum brasilense

This study aimed to analyze the influence of inoculation methods with Azospirillum brasilense in morphometric parameters of the maize crop. Maize plants, hybrid Formula VT®, were cultivated under different inoculation ways: absence of inoculation; seed inoculation; foliar inoculation; seed inoculation associated to foliar inoculation. In the phenological stages V8 and VT were measured the number of leaves, aerial height, root volume, stem diameter, dry mass of leaves, stem and sheath, root and total, besides the foliar content of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. In the R6 stage, together with the previous evaluations it was made the ear diameter and length, number of kernel rows, number of kernels per row, dry mass of the reproductive structure and of thousand grains, and total number of grains, besides the grains content of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Fortnightly was measured the SPAD index from the leave’s apex third, medial third and basal third. The inoculation methods with A. brasilense had little influence in morphometric and nutritional parameters of the maize development, not influencing in production. Maize plants inoculated with A. brasilense, via seed and via seed associated to foliar spraying, positively stood out for the stem diameter, leaves dry mas, root volume, and for the foliar content of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium