Volume 39, Number 5, 2015

ABSTRACT Regosols in the Agreste Meridional region of Pernambuco, Brazil, are used for various agricultural activities, and prominent among them is production of common bean. An expressive variation is perceived in common bean crop yield, possibly associated with the presence of lamellae, which make for distinct water fluxes among these soils. The objective was to analyze the macro- and micromorphological, and physical characteristics of the Regosols located in the Agreste Meridional region of Pernambuco to understand the water fluxes in […]

ABSTRACT Preservation of mangroves, a very significant ecosystem from a social, economic, and environmental viewpoint, requires knowledge on soil composition, genesis, morphology, and classification. These aspects are of paramount importance to understand the dynamics of sustainability and preservation of this natural resource. In this study mangrove soils in the Subaé river basin were described and classified and inorganic waste concentrations evaluated. Seven pedons of mangrove soil were chosen, five under fluvial influence and two under marine influence and analyzed for […]

ABSTRACT In recent years, geotechnologies as remote and proximal sensing and attributes derived from digital terrain elevation models indicated to be very useful for the description of soil variability. However, these information sources are rarely used together. Therefore, a methodology for assessing and specialize soil classes using the information obtained from remote/proximal sensing, GIS and technical knowledge has been applied and evaluated. Two areas of study, in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, totaling approximately 28.000 ha were used for […]

ABSTRACT Population growth increases the need for food production, coupled in may cases with the indiscriminate use of fertilizers and incorporation of transgenic plants in the production system. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of cadmium on the growth of Bt transgenic corn and non-transgenic corn, inoculated with mycorrhizal fungi under controlled conditions. For that purpose, an experiment was set up in a 5 × 4 × 2 factorial arrangement with five Cd rates (0, 28.5, […]

ABSTRACT Soil mesofauna consists of organisms that measure from 0.100 μm to 2 mm, being important to evaluate methods employed for its characterization. The objectives of this study were to define how long the soil material must remain in the Berlese-Tüllgren extraction device to capture organisms of the mesofauna and determine the minimum extraction time for correct use of the Shannon, Simpson, Pielou, and Margalef indices used to evaluate the diversity, dominance, and richness of the mesofauna communities. The study […]

ABSTRACT Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a highly mycotrophic crop, and prior soil cover may affect the density of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMFs), as well as the composition of the AMFs community in the soil. The aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence and the structure of AMFs communities in cassava grown after different cover crops, and the effect of the cover crop on mineral nutrition and cassava yield under an organic farming system. The occurrence and structure […]

ABSTRACT The large production of sewage sludge (SS), especially in large urban centers, has led to the suggestion of using this waste as fertilizer in agriculture. The economic viability of this action is great and contributes to improve the environment by cycling the nutrients present in this waste, including high contents of organic matter and plant nutrients. This study evaluated the chemical and biochemical properties of Dystrophic and Eutroferric Latossolos Vermelhos (Oxisols) under corn and after SS application at different […]

ABSTRACT Quantitative assessment of soil physical quality is of great importance for eco-environmental pollution and soil quality studies. In this paper, based on the S-theory, data from 16 collection sites in the Haihe River Basin in northern China were used, and the effects of soil particle size distribution and bulk density on three important indices of the S-theory were investigated on a regional scale. The relationships between unsaturated hydraulic conductivity Ki at the inflection point and S values (S/hi) were […]

ABSTRACT Knowledge of the terms (or processes) of the soil water balance equation or simply the components of the soil water balance over the cycle of an agricultural crop is essential for soil and water management. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyze these components in a Cambissolo Háplico (Haplocambids) growing muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.) under drip irrigation, with covered and uncovered soil, in the municipality of Baraúna, State of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil (05º 04’ 48” […]

ABSTRACT Groundwater management depends on the knowledge on recharge rates and water fluxes within aquifers. The recharge is one of the water cycle components most difficult to estimate. As a result, despite the chosen method, the estimates are subject to uncertainties that can be identified by means of comparison with other approaches. In this study, groundwater recharge estimates based on the water balance in the unsaturated zone is assessed. Firstly, the approach is evaluated by comparing the results with those […]