ABSTRACT Physical properties of the Technosols formed by the tailings deposition may constitute a physical barrier that limits water movement and plant development due to the properties received from those sediments. This study aimed to evaluate the physical quality of the Technosols formed by the deposition of sediments displaced by the Fundão Dam failure, Mariana, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, based on the evaluation of physical properties and Load Bearing Capacity Models (LBCM). For that, three areas under different vegetation types […]

ABSTRACT Sugarcane culture in Brazil has expanded the planting area to degraded pastures and sandy soils. Sugarcane field reform is carried out after five or more harvest cycles, with conventional tillage, followed by planting sugarcane, or growing soybeans or a cover crop. This study aimed to analyze the effects of these different managements in the conventional sugarcane reform on the physical properties and organic carbon in an Argissolo Vermelho distrófico arênico (sandy Ultisol), located at latitude 21° 13’ 40” south, […]

ABSTRACT The least limiting water range (LLWR) has been extensively determined, but evaluating if LLWR can indeed indicate soil physical stress on plant growth is still a controversial issue. In this study, we used the Hydrus-1D hydrological model to simulate root water uptake (RWU) to analyze if RWU and LLWR are correlated under stress conditions. The LLWR was determined in a sandy-loam Ultisol and a clayey Oxisol. In both soils, RWU extracted by plants (leaf area index set as 3) […]

The least limiting water range (LLWR) has been used as an indicator of soil physical quality as it represents, in a single parameter, the soil physical properties directly linked to plant growth, with the exception of temperature. The usual procedure for obtaining the LLWR involves determination of the water retention curve (WRC) and the soil resistance to penetration curve (SRC) in soil samples with undisturbed structure in the laboratory. Determination of the WRC and SRC using field measurements (in situ […]

Least Limiting Water Range (LLWR) integrates soil physical properties related to crop growth and corresponds to the interval between the upper and lower limits of water content in the soil within which limitations to root growth are minimal. In agricultural areas, soil management can lead to changes in its structure, mainly due to compaction and, subsequently, bulk density can reach values outside the limits in which conditions are ideal for plant growth. Therefore, the aim of this study was to […]

The effects of soil use and management on soil physical quality have been largely discussed due to its environmental and agronomic impacts. The least limiting water range (LLWR) is a modern indicator of soil physical quality that can indicate processes and mechanisms linked to soil physical degradation caused by soil use and management. The aim of this work was to quantify the influence of different land uses and soil tillage on the LLWR of an Oxisol (170, 40 and 790 […]

Soil management influences the chemical and physical properties of soil. Chemical conditions have been thoroughly studied, while the role of soil physical conditions regarding crop yield has been neglected. This study aimed to analyze the wheat yield and its relationship with physical properties of an Oxisol under no-tillage (NT). The study was carried out between 2010 and 2011, in Reserva do Iguaçu, State of Paraná, Brazil, on the Campo Bonito farm, after 25 years of NT management. Based on harvest […]

Coffee farmers from the physiographic region known as the Upper San Francisco River, MG, Brazil, have been adopting a new conservation management system with effects on the soil physical quality that require evaluation. The objective of this work was to study the physical quality of a Latosol and a Cambisol in contiguous areas under commercial coffee plantations. The soil of a transition area at the top of the landscape was classified as latossolic dystrophic Tb Haplic Cambisol (Inceptsol) and the […]

In Brazil extensive areas are covered with pine forests, planted for pulp and paper production. This industry generates solid alkaline waste, such as dregs. The application of this dregs to forest soils is an alternative for soil acidity correction and plant nutrient supply, as well as a solution for its proper disposal. The purpose of this study was to compare the residual effect of surface application of dregs and dolomitic lime on (a) changes in the physical and chemical properties […]

The soil physical quality is one of the factors that determine the agronomic, economic and environmental sustainability in long-term no-tillage systems (NT). Soil compaction has been discussed as a factor that contributes to a reduction in physical quality under NT. However, the use of NT can increase soil organic matter and lead to a continuous and stable porous system that mitigates the negative impacts of compaction. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the physical quality of an Oxisol […]