Herb recovery was evaluated in degraded Caatinga sites protected from grazing and enriched with native trees, in Patos-PB state, Brazil. Treatments were randomized according to a block design with five treatments (no tree planting -T 0 -or tree planting of three tree species in pure -T 1 =Poincianella pyramidalis, T 2 =Mimosa tenuiflora and T 3 =Cnidoscolus quercifolius -or mixed balanced stands -T 4 ) and five replications of squared-144-m 2 plots with 36 seedlings developing in planting holes enriched with manure and chemical fertilizers, arranged in a 2 m x 2 m grid. Data were collected from September 2008 to October 2009. After this period, natural tree regeneration was still not observed, and tree canopy covered 15 to 49% of the soil and did not affect herb growth and species composition. Initial and final herb cover were 16% and 100%, respectively. The number of dicot herbs increased from five, mainly two Sida species, to 13 species, monocots were represented by one species only (Aristida sp.), and quantity of herb forage reached 3 ton/ha (2:1, dicot:monocot). Adjacent overgrazed plots kept the initial low level of herb cover and species composition. Animal deferment during one year allowed the increase in soil cover and plant diversity in degraded Caatinga sites into which planted tree seedlings established successfully. This management practice could be implemented to avoid further environmental degradation and recover degraded areas. Keywords: tropical dry forest; Poincianella pyramidalis; Mimosa tenuiflora; Cnidoscolus quercifolius. RESUMOA recuperação do estrato herbáceo foi avaliada em áreas antropizadas de Caatinga protegidas de pastejo e enriquecidas com árvores nativas, em Patos -PB, Brasil. Os tratamentos foram aleatorizados de acordo com o delineamento em blocos casualizados com cinco tratamentos (Sem plantio -T 0 -ou plantio puro de Poincianella pyramidalis -T 1 -, Mimosa tenuiflora -T 2 -ou Cnidoscolus quercifolius -T 3 -ou misto das três espécies -T 4 ) e cinco repetições de parcelas quadradas de 144 m 2 com 36 mudas plantadas em covas no espaçamento 2 m x 2 m e enriquecidas com esterco e fertilizantes. Os dados foram coletados de setembro de 2008 a outubro de 2009. Após este período, ainda não havia regeneração arbórea natural, e as copas das árvores recobriam de 15 a 49% do solo e não afetavam o crescimento e a composição da comunidade herbácea. O estrato herbáceo recobria 16% e 100% do solo no início e final do período experimental, respectivamente, o número das dicotiledôneas herbáceas aumentou de cinco, majoritariamente duas espécies de Sida, para 13 espécies, as monocotiledôneas eram representadas por apenas uma espécie (Aristida sp.), e a quantidade de
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
334 Leonard St
Brooklyn, NY 11211
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.