Relief Position and Soil Properties under Continuous Banana Cropping in Subhumid Climate in Northeast Brazil

Abstract

Sequences of thick and eroded soils in hills surfaces are cultivated with banana since the beginning of the last century in the Northeast of Pernambuco (PE), Brazil. Measurements of soil properties depending on soil slope under intensive agricultural cultivation are limited mostly as the pedogenetic approach. This study aimed to identify the dominant soil types, to evaluate morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties of soil profiles, and link them to the relief position under continuous banana cropping, in the transition Mata-Agreste of PE. Three slope classes and soil profiles were considered: Profile 1 (P1), upper third of the elevation slope; Profile 2 (P2), middle third of the slope; and Profile 3 (P3) lower third. They were opened, described, and soil samples collected from all horizons at a typical slope of the region. Independent of relief position and land use, all soils are deep (>1.50 m) and present the argic horizons (Bt) developed in all steeply sloping surfaces (15-33 %). The Bt horizon presented the highest values of soil bulk density and microporosity. Despite the presence of illite, all the soil profiles showed remarkable degree weathering, are mostly kaolinitic, besides presenting goethite and quartz in the soil clay fraction, and predominance of quartz in the silt and sand fraction. Water-stable aggregates >2 mm were dominant in all the relief positions. Acidity, low cation exchange capacity, and in general, nutrient poverty were observed in the soil profiles, as opposed accumulation of exchangeable cations on the lower third of the slope (P3). However, the soil properties were affected by land use and water erosion. The Ap horizons showed the highest values of pH, exchangeable bases, phosphorus available, and organic carbon due to agricultural practices, while the steepest slope (P2) had the lowest content of clay, phosphorus and mean weight diameter of aggregates, and higher organic carbon content, in the superficial horizon, due to removal and deposition by water erosion. From the upper third to the lower third of the slope, Nitic Acrisol, Haplic Acrisol, and Nitic Lixisol were formed.

Fertility variability in a Latosol cultivated with fertigated banana

“…The reduction in COT values is also evidenced when comparing the values prior to the implementation of the experiment, decreasing from 15 g kg -1 (Table 2) to 9.17 g kg -1 (Table 4), i.e., a 39% loss that was not reestablished even after 18 consecutive months of banana cultivation, possibly because, as a labile material, COT can be easily decomposed and removed during the rainy period and deposited at a lower elevation. Almeida et al (2019), observed similar results for COT in banana cultivation at different relief positions, with higher COT contents in the Fertility variability in a Latosol cultivated with fertigated banana middle third region (0-0.15 m depth), which was attributed to replacement and removal by water erosion. Soil organic matter is the most sensitive parameter for evaluating a management system and intimately relates to the CEC (SOLLY et al, 2020).…”

“…The study was conducted in April 2017 at the Irrigation Perimeter Nupeba, managed by the Development Company of the São Francisco and Parnaíba Valleys (2020) in the municipality of Riachão das Neves (11°44'49''S and 11°54'23''W, 440 m of elevation), western Bahia. According to the current Köppen classifi cation, the climate is classifi ed as Aw, i.e., hot and semi-humid (ALVARES et al, 2013). The mean annual temperature is 27 °C, with a mean annual precipitation of 1,000 mm and a rainy season from October to April, with November, December, and January ranking as the rainiest months (INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE METEOROLOGIA, 2020).…”

“…Another factor to be considered for the variability of nutrients and soil organic matter is the local topography, which infl uences soil properties by affecting the microclimate, drainage, outfl ow, erosion, and soil formation (ALMEIDA et al, 2019). Moreover, attention should be paid to areas with intensive banana cultivation, in which soil variability can be affected by particle size distribution (OLIVEIRA et al, 2013) and the depth and physical attributes of the soil, impacting plant roots (MIOTTI et al, 2013), in addition to the spatial variability of chemical attributes due to the microrelief (ARTUR et al, 2014).…”