Infiltration is the passage of water through the soil surface, influenced by the soil type and cultivation and by the soil roughness, surface cover and water content. Infiltration absorbs most of the rainwater and is therefore crucial for planning mechanical conservation practices to manage runoff. This study determined water infiltration in two soil types under different types of management and cultivation, with simulated rainfall of varying intensity and duration applied at different times, and to adjust the empirical model of […]

Apart from the soil tillage system, the soil surface conditions that govern the rainwater erosion process change during growth of the corn crop. At the same time, the physical conditions of the soil surface that govern soil losses are different from those that govern water losses by erosion. The hypothesis of this study is that these changes occurring during the growth of the corn crop reduce soil losses but do not reduce water losses by erosion. Based on that, this […]

Soil and water loss data from rainfall erosion studies are fundamental for the planning of soil conservation. Despite the implantation of no-tillage systems, introduced in the 1970s, conservation practices, e.g., contour cropping and terracing, are still required for an effective control of rainfall erosion, especially in areas with high rainfall amounts. Another alternative for erosion control is the planting of cover crops for soil protection. The objective of this study was to quantify water and soil losses by rainfall erosion […]

Water erosion is the major cause of soil and water losses and the main factor of degradation of agricultural areas. The objective of this work was to quantify pluvial water erosion from an untilled soil with crop rows along the contour, in 2009 and 2010, on a Humic Dystrupept, with the following treatments: a) maize monoculture; b) soybean monoculture; c) common bean monoculture; d) intercropped maize and bean, exposed to four simulated rainfall tests of on hour at controlled intensity […]

The soil surface roughness increases water retention and infiltration, reduces the runoff volume and speed and influences soil losses by water erosion. Similarly to other parameters, soil roughness is affected by the tillage system and rainfall volume. Based on these assumptions, the main purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of tillage treatments on soil surface roughness (RR) and tortuosity (T) and to investigate the relationship with soil and water losses in a series of simulated rainfall events. […]

Under conservation tillage systems, the effectiveness of crop residues in reducing water erosion decreases if the mulch is carried away by runoff and/or if the runoff furrows the soil. This phenomenon is called mulch failure, characterizing the critical slope length, i.e., the distance on the ground after which the runoff shear stress is sufficient to overcome the resistance of the mulch to be carried away and/or the resistance of the soil to furrowing. The objective of this study was to […]

Native pastures in southern Brazil are used for cattle and sheep grazing. The forage offer in the spring-summer season is greater than the animal requirement, so the forage left over is usually burned. Pasture burning mineralizes nutrients and leaves the soil bare, triggering water erosion. This study aimed to quantify total soil and water losses and P, K and NH4+ contents in the runoff water from an Oxisol with native pasture. In the treatments, the native pastures, were i) unburned […]

A change in the type of land use, if not properly planned and conducted, may result in soils with diminished production capacity and increased erosion susceptibility, which will reduce crop yields and hamper soil and water conservation. This study had the purpose of investigating the soil erosion caused by rainfall in an originally native pasture area, in the second and third year of cultivation of two annual row crops (respectively, cowpea – Vigna unguiculata – and shorgum – Shorgum bicolor), […]

Soil management in perennial crops such as orchards can influence erosion. This study evaluated soil and water losses from an Oxisol under simulated rain, from August 2007 to April 2008, at the experimental station of Embrapa Uva e Vinho, in Vacaria (RS). On the 3.5 m x 11 m plots, rains of one hour were simulated at a constant intensity of 70 to 88 mm h-1. In the apple orchard, the following soil management systems were studied: i) manual weeding […]

Detailed studies on hydrology and sediment production are of great value to enhance the understanding and control of the water erosion process, with a view to more continuous and effective soil and water conservation practices. The purpose of this study was to develop specific (for each treatment replication) hydrograms (instantaneous runoff discharge versus time) and sedimentograms (instantaneous sediment concentrations in the runoff and instantaneous soil loss rates versus time), associated with water erosion in a soil under different crop sequences […]