In recent years, the growth of the cultivated area with sweet corn in conventional tillage system in Brazil expanded, although crops can be grown on different residues of cover crops, which improve nutrient cycling and crop productivity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the biomass production and to quantify the rate of plant residues decomposition of different cover crops, and correlate the results with the production and grain yield of sweet corn in an area located in the Cerrado biome. The experimental design used was randomized blocks with eight treatments: PM - pearl millet; SH - sunn hemp; SG - signal grass; PM + SH; PM + SG; SH + SG; PM+ SH + SG; FW - fallow (spontaneous vegetation), which preceded the cultivation of sweet corn. Fresh biomass (FB) and dry biomass (DB) of the cover crops were evaluated, as well as the rate of plant residue decomposition. Sweet corn productivity, straw and corncob weight, and grain yield were also determined. Pearl millet presented a better performance in FB production, decomposition rate, residue half-life (T½ life) in soil, yield, corn cob strawweight and yield of sweet corn. Pearl millet, when mixed with other plants, presented reduced rate of residue decomposition and increased residue T½ life. The FW presented the lowest biomass production, with great rate of decomposition and low T½ life. Cover crops grown before sweet corn in soils of good fertility did not affect crop agronomic characteristics. Pearl millet is the best cover crop adapted to Cerrado Brazilian climatic conditions to be used in monoculture or in mixtures with other plants.
Intensive conventional tillage cultivation of both green and sweet corn can contribute to soil degradation when compared to no-till systems. This study aimed to assess the agronomic characteristics and physicochemical quality of green and sweet corn grains grown under succession planting using different cover crops. Two experiments were conducted, one with green corn and the other sweet corn, using a randomized block design consisting of seven treatments: brachiaria (B); Pearl millet (PM); showy crotalaria (SC); SC+B; PM+B; PM+SC and PM+SC+B, with four repetitions. The fresh (FW) and dry weight (DW) of the cover crops and decomposition of their residue were assessed, in addition to the agronomic performance and bromatological quality of green and sweet corn grains. Brachiaria showed the lowest FW and DW production, highest residue decomposition rate and shortest half-life when compared to the other soil covers assessed. Productivity and yield for sweet corn grains and green corn ears were not statistically affected by the different cover crop residues. The cover crop residues influenced moisture content, total titratable acidity and total soluble solids in green corn, and lipids, proteins, total soluble solids, pH and ascorbic acid in sweet corn.
Special corn is cultivated all year conventionally round; however, its productivity increases when grown under a no-tillage system (NTS). This study aimed to evaluate the agronomic performance of sweet and green corn cultivated under residues of different cover crops and the NTS implantation stages. Two experiments were carried out in the randomized block design, with four replications, in each of the three areas. The experiments consisted of evaluating the sweet and green corn, simultaneously, in three areas at different stages of development of NTS: initial (1 year), transition (7 years), and consolidation (19 years) with six types of cover crops: Signal grass (SG), Pearl millet (PM), Sunn hemp (SH), a mixture of SG + SH, SG + PM, and PM + SH. The dry matter (DM) production of the cover crops, the productivity of husked and unhusked ears, straw, and grain yield were evaluated. The SH had the highest dry mass production among the studied cover crops in all phases of the NTS. The phase of the NTS did not influence the productivity of ears with or without husk in green corn. The cultivation of sweet corn in transition and consolidation areas of the NTS showed better yields when compared to the initial phase of the system.
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