Nitrous oxide (N2O) is the most important non-CO2 greenhouse gas and soil management systems should be evaluated for their N2O mitigation potential. This research evaluated a long-term (22 years) experiment testing the effect of soil management systems on N2O emissions in the postharvest period (autumn) from a subtropical Rhodic Hapludox at the research center FUNDACEP, in Cruz Alta, state of Rio Grande do Sul. Three treatments were evaluated, one under conventional tillage with soybean residues (CTsoybean) and two under no-tillage […]

Soil tillage systems can greatly influence potassium and root distribution in the soil and, as a result, affect corn growth and development. To improve the understanding of these interrelationships, a soil was analyzed after 18 years of cultivation under different management systems. A detailed soil sampling was carried out in a clayey Red Argisol (Udult) profile in the beginning of the grain filling stage of corn in the 2006/07 growing season. The experimental design consisted of a completely randomized scheme […]

Soil and fertilizer management during cultivation can affect crop productivity and profitability. Long-term experiments are therefore necessary to determine the dynamics of nutrient and root distribution as related to soil profile, as well as the effects on nutrient uptake and crop growth. An 18-year experiment was conducted at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul State (UFRGS), in Eldorado do Sul, Brazil, on Rhodic Paleudult soil. Black oat and vetch were planted in the winter and corn in the […]

Several factors determine the selectivity of the soil erosion process by rainfall concerning the size of eroded-sediments transported in the runoff water. Among them, it is important to point out the intensity of the rainfall and its associated runoff, the texture and degree of consolidation of the soil surface layer, the form of erosion (interill, rill, or gully), the microrelief of the terrain or surface roughness created by tillage, and the size and stability of the soil aggregates. Considering that, […]

The ability of a soil to keep its structure under the erosive action of water is usually high in natural conditions and decreases under frequent and intensive cultivation. The effect of five tillage systems (NT = no-till; CP = chisel plowing and one secondary disking; CT = primary and two secondary distings; CTb = CT with crop residue burning; and CTr = CT with removal of crop residues from the field), combined with five nutrient sources (C = control, no […]

The soil quality of a crop-livestock system can change according to the pasture and soil management. This research was carried out in Otacilio Costa, Santa Catarina State, southern Brazil, on a Humic Cambisol previously used with native grass pasture for 9 years, desiccated in May 2003, for use with ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) pasture in the winter and corn in the summer. A split plot design was used, consisting of pasture management systems and soil tillage systems prior to the summer […]

Tillage is one of the most important components of soil management in the process of crop production, normally used to create a favorable environment for sowing, seed germination and plant development. In addition, it is mainly determinant for the or surface soil physical conditions that will ultimately determine the erosion and the effectiveness of runoff reduction of the various soil management systems used to establish a given crop, in a given place. Considering these aspects, a field study under natural […]

Increasing underground plant biomass and soil aggregate stability by application of adequate management practices enhances the quality in terms of water infiltration and erosion resistance. Based on this premise, an erosion study using simulated rainfall was carried out in the field, at an experimental station of the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul – EEA/UFRGS), in Eldorado do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, in the summer of 2003/2004, in a 7.5 year soil management experiment. The purpose […]

The commom practice of burning the sugar cane plant straw before harvesting has been the subject of very intensive discussions related to the possible changes on soil properties as well as the emission of gases in the atmosphere. The objective of this study was to evaluate variations in soil physical and chemical properties of two areas of Cambisols (Inceptisols) cultivated with sugarcane, on of which area was submitted to continuous cultivation and the other was in its 50th

The improvement in the structural soil quality under continuous no-tillage occurs concomitantly to soil (re)acidification. Surface compaction can sometimes occur, owing to machinery traffic, which has to be corrected by soil tilling. In a 12-year experiment under different soil management systems we evaluated the time it takes to recover the initial soil physical attributes that are affected by soil tillage by the occasion of lime reapplication. The experiment was set up on a Rhodic Paleudult (Ultisol) at the Agronomical Experimental […]