Volume 39, Number 3, 2015

In recent years, many researchers have claimed that world reserves of rock phosphate were getting depleted at an alarming rate, putting us on the path to scarcity of that essential resource within the next few decades. Others have claimed that such alarmist forecasts were frequent in the past and have always been proven unfounded, making it likely that the same will be true in the future. Both viewpoints are directly relevant to the level of funding devoted to research on […]

Despite numerous studies conducted on the lower limit of soil and its contact with saprolite layers, a great deal of work is left to standardize identification and annotation of these variables in the field. In shallow soils, the appropriately noting these limits or contacts is essential for determining their behavior and potential use. The aims of this study were to identify and define the field contact and/or transition zone between soil and saprolite in profiles of an Alisol derived from […]

Ethnopedological knowledge has provided important information about the way of life of rural people and their traditions, like the craft of making pieces of pottery from suitable soils. The objective of this study was to evaluate the physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties of Planosols and Gleysols used in the production of handcrafted pottery artifacts in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. In the clay pits, two profiles of Planosol soil (P1 and P2) and one of Gleysol soil (P3) used […]

The difficulty in finding recent information on the spatial behavior of properties of soils in the Brazilian Amazon region has been a concern of many researchers. Due to the great difficulty and costs in assessing soil properties, alternative methods have been used for prediction, such as magnetic susceptibility. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the spatial variability of magnetic susceptibility and of physical and chemical soil properties in an Argissolo Vermelho (Ultisol) from native forest, Archaeological Black […]

The difficulty in finding recent information on the spatial behavior of properties of soils in the Brazilian Amazon region has been a concern of many researchers. Due to the great difficulty and costs in assessing soil properties, alternative methods have been used for prediction, such as magnetic susceptibility. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the spatial variability of magnetic susceptibility and of physical and chemical soil properties in an Argissolo Vermelho (Ultisol) from native forest, Archaeological Black […]

The difficulty in finding recent information on the spatial behavior of properties of soils in the Brazilian Amazon region has been a concern of many researchers. Due to the great difficulty and costs in assessing soil properties, alternative methods have been used for prediction, such as magnetic susceptibility. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the spatial variability of magnetic susceptibility and of physical and chemical soil properties in an Argissolo Vermelho (Ultisol) from native forest, Archaeological Black […]

Products from mining operations are of great economic importance to the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. However, due to the extensive damage they may cause to biota, including soil fauna, recovery and biomonitoring of these areas and their surroundings are necessary. Considering the ecological importance of earthworms and their potential as bioindicators, the aim of this study was to evaluate the toxicity of arsenic to earthworms of the species Eisenia andrei Bouché in soils around gold mining operations in the […]

The use of rock phosphates, combined with proper management of soil microorganisms able to solubilize phosphate, is an alternative for reducing the costs of P fertilization. However, both practices require prior assessment of the potential of the rhizospheric microbiota in solubilizing P sources with low reactivity under field conditions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of soil microbes to solubilize Ca, Fe, and Al phosphates, as well as Araxá and Catalão rock phosphates, in rhizospheric and […]

Preharvest burning is widely used in Brazil for sugarcane cropping. However, due to environmental restrictions, harvest without burning is becoming the predominant option. Consequently, changes in the microbial community are expected from crop residue accumulation on the soil surface, as well as alterations in soil metabolic diversity as of the first harvest. Because biological properties respond quickly and can be used to monitor environmental changes, we evaluated soil metabolic diversity and bacterial community structure after the first harvest under sugarcane […]

Tin mining in the Serra da Onça in the Jamari National Forest, State of Rondônia, Brazil, caused severe chemical, physical, and biological changes in the soil. In 1997, the area was divided into plots and a rehabilitation program was begun, which consisted of land surface modeling, construction of terraces, liming, fertilization, and planting of leguminous crops and native plants. In subsequent years, new plots were set up in the rehabilitation program so that at the time of sampling the different […]