Abstract
ABSTRACT The form of occupation of the state of Rondônia, Brazil, favored the extensive agriculture, which resulted in a fast deforestation. The removal of forests and inadequate soil management and use, combined with a hot and wet climate, affected the soil chemical, physical, and biological attributes. In search for less impacting and alternatives that promote greater soil conservation for coffee production in the North region of Brazil, the objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of two coffee crop systems on the soil chemical and microbiological attributes. The treatments consisted of a shaded coffee crop (SCC) and a full-sun coffee crop (FCC). A completely randomized design was used, with four clusters per treatment and seven sampling points per cluster, which constituted a replication, totaling 28 replications per treatment. The data were collected in April 2018, in a rural property in the municipality of Cacoal, state of Rondônia, Brazil (11º21’50’’S, 61º20’10’’W, and altitude of 238 m). The soil organic matter, pH, P, K, Ca, Mg, Al, H+Al, base saturation, and basal respiration were determined. The soil under SCC had higher Ca content, pH, and base saturation, and lower potential acidity (H+Al) and Al content than that under FCC. The litterfall on the soil under FCC presented higher N and Mg contents. The soil basal respiration increased in the first 5 cm depth in the treatment with SCC.
Highlights
Coffee crop is important for rural proprieties with family basis in the state of Rondônia, Brazil; there is a greater focus on this activity in some periods because of the high price of coffee beans, and a lower focus on some periods due to the low prices
Shaded coffee crops grown in environments within the Atlantic Forest biome showed higher leaf area, number of branches, leaf nitrogen content, green fruit percentage, plant height, canopy diameter, number of leaves in the branches, and distance between nodes than coffee crops grown under full sun, without decreasing yield (Ricci et al, 2011)
Two areas with coffee plants were chosen for the study (Figure 1), which were managed differently and defined as follows: Treatment 1 = soil cultivated with an agroforest system with coffee plants (Coffea canephora) and teak (Tectona sp.), which was called shaded coffee crops (SCC); and Treatment 2 = soil cultivated with coffee crops at full sun, which was called full-sun coffee crop (FCC)
Summary
Coffee crop is important for rural proprieties with family basis in the state of Rondônia, Brazil; there is a greater focus on this activity in some periods because of the high price of coffee beans, and a lower focus on some periods due to the low prices. Considering this context, agroforestry systems have been introduced, and those focused on ecological and economic benefits and on sustainability (Rodrigues et al, 2015) have been established. The adoption of management systems that increase stocks of organic residues in the soil or in the soil surface are essential to maintain and improve the soil quality (Stefanoski et al, 2013)
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