Suchergebnisse

Untersuchung über Bodenverbesserung und Ertrag bei Düngemitteleinsatz

Studies on maximum phosphorus adsorption capacity (MPAC) in soils from Roraima State and attributes that interfere with the magnitude of this characteristic are relevant and motivated this study. In this context, topsoil samples (0–0.20 m) from four soil classes (Oxisol–LA and Oxisol–LV [ITÃ, Caracaraí]; Oxisol–LA [Serra da Prata, Mucajaí]; Oxisol–LA and Ultisol–PA [CCA, Boa Vista]; Oxisol–FT [Bonfim] and Alfisol –SN [Surumu, Pacaraima]) representative of Roraima State were used in this study in order to determine the influence of soil physical, chemical, and mineralogical attributes on MPAC. Air-dried soil samples of 2.5 g and 0.01 mol L?1 CaCl2 (25 mL) solution were stirred for 24 h, being added P in the form of KH2PO4 at concentrations of 0–60, 0–80, and 0–110 mg L?1. P was analyzed in the supernatant for determining its adsorbed amount (P-rem). Adsorption values were fitted to the Langmuir isotherm in order to assess MPAC. Correlation tests were performed between MPAC and binding energy, pH, organic matter, clay, and CEC. MPAC values ranged from 14.50 to 527.93 mg kg?1 in the soil. The soils FT–Bonfim and LV–ITÃ presented a higher MPAC. Considering the representative soil classes in the State, MPAC does not correlate with any of the assessed attributes. In the soil classes Oxisol and Ultisol, MPAC has a negative and significant correlation with binding energy.

Although the fertility status of soils in the West African moist savanna is generally believed to be low, crop yields on farmers' fields vary widely from virtually nil to values near the potential production. The soil fertility status was evaluated for a number of farmers' fields selected at random in 2 villages (Zouzouvou and Eglimé) representative for the derived savanna (DS) benchmark area and in 2 villages (Danayamaka and Kayawa) representative for the Northern Guinea savanna (NGS) benchmark area. The relation between soil fertility status and soil type characteristics and fertilizer use was explored. In an accompanying missing nutrient greenhouse trial, the most limiting nutrients for maize growth were determined. While soils in the DS villages were formed on different geological units, soils in the NGS villages could be differentiated according to their position on the landscape. Generally, soils in the DS contained a smaller amount of silt (104 vs. 288 g kg−1), a larger amount of sand (785 vs. 584 g kg−1), C (9.3 vs. 6.3 g kg−1), N (0.7 vs. 0.5 g kg−1), Olsen-P (10.7 vs. 5.4 mg kg−1), and had a higher CEC (7.0 vs. 4.8 cmolc kg−1) than soils in the NGS villages. The large silt content of the soils in the NGS is a reflection of the aeolian origin of the parent material. Within the benchmark areas, general soil fertility characteristics were similar in the villages in the NGS, except for a larger amount of particulate organic matter in Kayawa than in Danayamaka. This may also have led to a significantly larger amount of ammonium-N content in the 0–20 and 20–40 cm soil layers in Kayawa compared to Danayamaka (42 vs 24 kg N ha−1 in the 0–20 cm soil layer). Differences in topsoil soil characteristics between the DS villages were a reflection of differences in clay quality (kaolinitic vs. 2:1 clay minerals) of the parent material and past fertilizer use. The Olsen-P and exchangeable K contents were observed to increase with increased fertilizer application rate in both benchmarks, while fertilizer application rate had no significant effect on the organic C or total N content of the soil nor on its ECEC. The response of maize shoot biomass production to applied N was similar for both benchmarks (biomass accumulation in the treatment without N was, on average, 55% of the biomass production in the treatment which received all nutrients), while soils in the NGS responded more strongly to applied P than soils in the DS (37% vs 66% of biomass production in the treatment which received all nutrients). The more favourable P status of soils in Eglimé (DS) was attributed to the more intense use of P fertilizers, as a result of government-supported cotton production schemes. Response to cations, S or micronutrients were neglegible. A significant linear relationship was found between the soil Olsen-P content and the response to applied P up to levels of 12 mg kg−1 in the topsoil. Above this level, a plateau was reached. ; Directorate-General for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid, Belgium ; Peer Review

Pastures occupy a large part of Brazilian national territory, being of heterogeneous characteristics and varying in climate, fertility, and management. Water erosion, generated by the action of rainfall, is a principal source of soil depletion. These soils exhibit distinct behaviors spatially and temporally. Therefore, this research aims to evaluate the water and soil losses in a pasture of the Cerrado region during two periods of the year (winter and summer) with the aim of understanding the hydro-geomorphological dynamic of the pastures in question. A rainfall simulator was calibrated at 64.34 mm/h, to replicate similar intensities to those of the study region, for 30 minutes (32.17 mm) over four erosion plots. Overall, the plots presented low water and sediment losses, with the largest runoff volumes in the summer and the highest erosion rates in winter. These results are connected to seasonal climate variations expressed in the region, which are reflected in the plant growth habits, generating alterations in the structural quality of the pastures. It follows that the return of the rainy season (winter-summer transition) represents a critical phase for the triggering of the erosive process.

In tropical landscapes, vegetation patches with contrasting tree densities are distributed as mosaics. However, the locations of patches and densities of trees within them cannot be predicted by climate models alone. It has been proposed that plant-fire feedbacks drive functional thresholds at a landscape scale, thereby maintaining open (savanna) and closed (forest) communities as two distinct stable states. However, there is little rigorous field evidence for this threshold model. Here we aim to provide support for such a model from a field perspective and to analyze the functional and phylogenetic consequences of fire in a Brazilian savanna landscape (Cerrado). We hypothesize that, in tropical landscapes, savanna and forest are two stable states maintained by plant-fire feedbacks. If so, their functional and diversity attributes should change abruptly along a community closure gradient. We set 98 plots along a gradient from open savanna to closed forest in the Brazilian Cerrado and tested for a threshold pattern in nine functional traits, five soil features, and seven diversity indicators. We then tested whether the threshold pattern was associated with different fire regimes. Most community attributes presented a threshold pattern on the savanna-forest transition with coinciding breakpoints. The thresholds separated two community states: (1) open environments with low-diversity communities growing in poor soils and dominated by plants that are highly resistant to high-intensity fires; and (2) closed environments with highly diverse plant communities growing in more fertile soils and dominated by shade-tolerant species that efficiently prevent light from reaching the understory. In addition, each state was associated with contrasting fire regimes. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that forests and savannas are two coexisting stable states with contrasting patterns of function and diversity that are regulated by fire- plant feedbacks; our results also shed light on the mechanism driving each state. Overall, our results support the idea that fire plays an important role in regulating the distribution of savanna and forest biomes in tropical landscapes. © 2013 by the Ecological Society of America. ; We are grateful to Fundaçao de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP; process: 2010/01835-0),Coordenaçao de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nı́vel Superior (CAPES; process: 1019-11-2), Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientı́fico e Tecnológico (CNPq), and the Spanish Government (VIRRA and TREVOL projects, CGL2009- 12048/BOS, CGL2012-39938-C02-01) for financial support and the scholarships granted to the authors. ; Peer Reviewed