The impact of management on the physical and hydrological attributes of a darkred latosol under cerrado in Selviria, State of Mato Grosso do Sul - DOI: 10.4025/actasciagron.v28i1.1284

Abstract

This research work studied the influence of notillage, conventional tillage and four ground cover plants on the saturated hydraulic conductivity, infiltration, retention, storage of water and matric potential in a DARKRED LATOSOL under cerrado, cultivated with maize. The study was conducted at Unesp of Ilha Solteira, State of São Paulo. A completely randomized design was used with subdivided parcels (randomized block design), with five treatments and four repetitions. The parcels were constituted of the following ground cover plants: Mucuna aterrima, Pennisetum americanum, Crotalaria juncea, Cajanus cajan and an area of spontaneous vegetation. As for the parcels subdivisions, the systems of soil management implemented were notillage (NT) and conventional tillage (CT). In the layers of 0.00.10 and 0.100.20 m, for tensions between 6 and 100 kPa, the CT system made the soil achieve greater water storage. Although CT (0 – 0.20 m) presented greater water storage compared to the NT, the same was less efficient in making the stored water available to the plants. The NT presented greater uniformity of water distribution in the profile of the soil.