Soil Properties and Plant Biomass Production in Natural Rangeland Management Systems

Romeu De Souza Werner,Neuro Hilton Wolshick,Ildegardis Bertol,Kristiana Fiorentin Dos Santos,Josie Moraes Mota,Fabrício Tondello Barbosa

doi:10.1590/18069657rbcs20150117

Abstract

ABSTRACT Improper management of rangelands can cause land degradation and reduce the economic efficiency of livestock activity. The aim of this study was to evaluate soil properties and quantify plant biomass production in four natural rangeland management systems in the Santa Catarina Plateau (Planalto Catarinense) of Brazil. The treatments, which included mowed natural rangeland (NR), burned natural rangeland (BR), natural rangeland improved through the introduction of plant species after harrowing (IH), and natural rangeland improved through the introduction of plant [...]

Highlights

The Araucaria Highland Plateau (Campos de Altitude do Planalto das Araucárias) is located in the south of Brazil and constitutes one of the region’s largest ecological areas
Bulk density was similar among the treatments after 330 days, which is consistent with the results of Abreu et al (2004) and Bordin et al (2005), and can be explained by the soil reconsolidation that occurred between the mechanical operation and the most recent evaluation
Harrowing or chisel plowing natural rangelands improves soil physical properties, the effect decreases over time and the values begin to approach those of burned natural rangelands and mowed natural rangelands

Summary

Introduction

The Araucaria Highland Plateau (Campos de Altitude do Planalto das Araucárias) is located in the south of Brazil and constitutes one of the region’s largest ecological areas. The range areas present in this ecosystem represent the main forage resource used for cattle raising (Nabinger et al, 2000), with range-fed animal production considered as one of the main economic activities. Natural grazing lands in the Santa Catarina Plateau are characterized by prominent seasonality regarding forage production. These rangelands are basically formed by hot season species, which stop growing with the arrival of the cold season and die in the frost. Limited biomass production results in overgrazing during the winter period, which implies a reduction in soil cover and damage to soil physical properties (Bertol et al, 1998). Field burning to renew grazing lands is a common practice at this time of the year, inducing the mineralization of organic matter and increasing nutrient availability in the soil surface in the short term; this effect is lost in the long-term period (Redin et al, 2011) due to nutrient loss, predominantly caused by water erosion (Bertol et al, 2011)

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