Liquid Bovine Biofertilizer and Cultivation Effects on the Porosity of a Typic Haplocambids as a Function of Cultivation and Dose

Abstract

ABSTRACT:The soil porous space is where processes related to gases and soil solution occur, and provides an adequate guide for agricultural practices. This study aimed to evaluate the integrated effects of cultivation and the application of liquid bovine biofertilizer on the porous network of a Typic Haplocambids (Cambissolo Háplico Ta Eutrófico) cultivated with figs (Ficus carica L.). Four treatments were evaluated (under fig cultivation with the application of 20, 40 and 60 % of biofertilizer through irrigation, a control treatment without biofertilizer and an additional treatment -soil under natural vegetation). Disturbed and undisturbed soil samples were collected in three soil layers (0.0-0.1, 0.1-0.2 and 0.2-0.3 m) with four replicates. The following physical properties were analyzed: particle-size distribution, soil bulk and particle densities, and soil water retention curve. The coefficient of intrinsic soil air permeability was calculated based on the equation that considers the decreasing pressure method. Soil porosity, pore continuity index and blocked porosity were calculated and pore length was estimated. Compared with the native forest, pore network quality is improved, if not maintained, when the soil is cultivated under the conditions described in this experiment. In the conditions of cultivation, the application of bovine biofertilizer, for supplying sediments that block or reduce the size of the pores, did not improve soil air permeability. The cases where pore network quality was worsened in soil porosity as a result of the applied treatments (Biofertilizer 20 %, Biofertilizer 40 % and Biofertilizer 60 % for the layer of 0.0-0.1 m and Biofertilizer 60 % for 0.1-0.2 m), although not considered critical to plant development, point to the need for specific management practices (for instance, avoid coarse residues in the biofertilizer before its application) to avoid soil degradation.