Growth and nodulation of soybean plants fertilized with poultry litter

Abstract

Nowadays much of the chemical fertilizers used in Brazil come from imports, what creates the necessity to seek for alternative fertilizers. One possibility is organic fertilizers, including poultry litter, which presents increasing availability in various regions of the country, due to the expansion of the poultry industry. Despite its availability, there are no enough studies that show the benefits of using poultry litter on soybeans in substitution of mineral fertilizer. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of different doses of poultry litter on leaf chlorophyll content, nodulation, and development of soybean plants. It was used a completely randomized design with five doses of poultry litter (0, 1, 2, 4 and 8 t ha-1) and a control with mineral fertilizer with four repetitions. On stages R1 and R5, chlorophyll readings were done using a portable meter and also the measurement of plant height. Plants were cut near the surface, roots were washed and the nodules were detached and counted. After that, it was determined the dry weight of plant roots, nodules, and shoots. Soybean fertilization with poultry litter increases the chlorophyll content of leaves, plant height, shoot dry matter, root dry matter, and nodulation. The use of poultry litter on soybean favors its growth with decreasing increments, except for root dry matter, and with an optimum dose for each variable. The supply of poultry litter can replace mineral fertilizers in terms of soybean growth.