Studies on water retention and availability are scarce for subtropical or humid temperate climate regions of the southern hemisphere. The aims of this study were to evaluate the relations of the soil physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties with water retention and availability for the generation and validation of continuous point pedotransfer functions (PTFs) for soils of the State of Santa Catarina (SC) in the South of Brazil. Horizons of 44 profiles were sampled in areas under different cover crops and […]

The presence of a groundcover in-between tree rows in orange orchards can affect the water uptake and physiology of the orange trees. The objective of this study was to characterize the relationships between the physiological variables of orange leaf and soil water content in a Paleudults in groundcover management systems with bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum), leguminous perennial peanut (Arachis pintoi) and spontaneous vegetation. The study was performed in in an experimental “Pêra” orange orchard established in 1993 in Alto Paraná, northwestern […]

The yield of 36 cacao trees (Theobroma cacao L.) on a farm in Itagibá, Bahia, Brazil were evaluated during the period of 1989-1995. The averages of the three highest yields (rainier years) and of the three lowest yields (drier years) of each area were considered the main variables. The variables were the chemical characteristics (pH in H2O and in KCl, organic carbon, total N, Al, Ca, Mg, P, K, Na, Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe, H + Al and the remaining […]

Based on the seven year-productivities (1989 to 1995) of 36 cacao-producing areas, on a farm in southern of Bahia, Brazil, the average of the three most and least productive years was obtained corresponding, respectively, to the highest and lowest rain availability. By path analysis, these productivities were related to both the soil morphological-physical characteristics (A-horizon depth; color, soil and particle densities of A and B horizons; texture of soil layers at 0-20 and 30-50 cm depth and the presence of […]