Atributos físicos e químicos do solo em áreas de cana-de-açúcar irrigada com manutenção da cobertura do solo, Jaíba MG

Abstract

The replacement of native vegetation areas by crops can cause several changes in chemical and physical attributes and imbalances in the ecosystem. This study aimed to evaluate the soil chemical and physical attributes of sugarcane irrigated crops compared to a native vegetation in the North of Minas Gerais State. Were selected four irrigated sugarcane crops Cane 6, Cane 7, Cane 8 and Cane 10 with six, seven, eight and ten years of cultivation, respectively, and a native vegetagion area next to the sugarcane crops, as a reference. In each area were collected six composite soil samples at 0-10, 10-20 and 20-30 cm deep, for determination of chemical and physical attributes and physical fractionation of soil organic matter. The replacement of native vegetation by sugarcane crops, with maintenance of part of the straw on the soil surface, improved the chemical attributes related to fertility and contributed to the maintenance of the soil structure and the more stable carbon organic fraction. The soil management practices adopted in the sugarcane crops contributed to the maintenance of soil quality when compared to the native vegetation.