Water retention in Cambisols under land uses in semiarid region of the Brazil

Abstract

Knowledge about the physical and hydric characterization in the soil is essential for studies on land use and plant development. Thus, this study evaluated water retention and its interrelationships with the physical and chemical attributes of Cambisols under different land uses in a rural settlement in a semiarid region of Brazil. The analysis of soil water retention curves associated with multivariate statistics was performed to distinguish agroecosystems. The environments studied were Preserved Forest - reference area, Cajarana Orchard Area, Corn/Bean Consortium, Watermelon/Pumpkin Consortium, and Agroecological Cultivation. It was obtained as a result that Preserved Forest presented the highest field capacity, permanent wilting point, and available water. However, there was greater water retention in Cajarana Orchard Area compared to other environments. The reference area and Agroecological Cultivation maintained conditions that improve the soil structure, weighted mean diameter, microporosity, and total porosity. In Watermelon/Pumpkin Consortium and Agroecological Cultivation, there was a greater contribution of the organic total carbon contents and in Cajarana Orchard Area, and Watermelon/Pumpkin Consortium had discriminating variables the clay, hydrogenionic potential in water, and macroporosity. Thus, the multivariate analysis allowed to analyze changes in water retention, which differed not only between land use but also in-depth and inorganic soil fractions. In addition, it was concluded that the soil tillage systems alter the chemical, physical and structural attributes of Cambisols of the semiarid studied and that the minimum tillage is an alternative to be adopted as the most suitable for the region.