The success in the use of pastures in silvopastoral systems depends on the understanding of the morphophysiological mechanisms and its interaction with the environment and of the management. It was aimed to evaluate the leaf appearance rate (LAR), leaf elongation rate (LER), stem elongation rate (SER), emerging leaf numbers (EmLN), expanded leaf numbers (ExLN), living leaf numbers (LLN), soil cover and plant height of Marandu grass intercropped with coconut. The experiment was mounted in a completely randomized arrangement, with six replications, in a split-plot design. The plots a treatments irrigated and not-irrigated and six rest periods in the split-plots (14, 21, 28, 35, 42 and 49 days). The irrigation provided increase in the soil cover, plant height, LER and SER of Marandu grass for the rest periods of 49 and 14 days, respectively. The rest periods provided linear reduction in the LAR and SER, and linear increase in the ExLN, LLN, soil cover and plant height of Marandu grass. The LER is bigger when rest periods used of 37 and 29 days, for Marandu grass irrigated and not-irrigated, respectively. It concludes that exactly in shade conditions, Marandu grass, when irrigated and submitted the biggest rest periods, provides to greaters morphogenic taxes and growth, indicating the potential of this fodder plant in integrated systems of production.
