Modificações químicas, fisiológicas e anatômicas na corola de café (Coffea arabica L. Mundo Novo) durante a floração

Abstract

Changes in chemical composition and anatomical structure were followed i n coffee corollas, from break of dormancy of flower buds to anthesis, during the 1968 flowering season i n Viçosa, Minas Gerais. The content of the reducing sugars, soluble sugars and starch increased rapidly in the corollas during the period from the ending of the dormancy of the buds to about four days before the opening of the flower. At this time it was verified that there was a decrease in the starch content and an increase in the content of the sugars. However, there was not a n exact equivalence between the variation of these two groups of organic constituents. The reducing sugars constituted the major part of the soluble sugars present in the corolla during the entire flowering phase after the termination of the dormancy. The activity of alfa-amylase per corolla was greater during the days preceding the anthesis. When expressed i n units of fresh weight the activity decreased, but this can be accredited YO the dilution resulting from the great increase of the amount of water. Histochemical studies confirmed the accentuated disappearance of the starch grains during the final growth. Initially the disappearance was more intense in the external epidermis and the underlying mesophyll, which coincided with the formation of large intercellular spaces in that portion of the mesophyll and with the swelling of the bud. The epidermis showed dense cytoplasm until anthesis.The external epidermis was thicker at first, but become as thick as the internal one toward the opening of the flower. These results suggest that the epidermis have an active function during the swelling phase and during the later anthesis phase. The role of the osmotic force created by the conversion of starch t o sugars in those phases may be only that of a growth stabilizer.