Decomposition and nutrients release from crop residues placed on a Yellow Latosol in the savanna of the Maranhão State

Abstract

In the no-tillage system the use of cover crops is a widely adopted alternative to increase the sustainability of the agricultural system. This study aimed to evaluate the decomposition rate and total nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) release from the biomass of natural bush fallow and cover crops (Brachiaria sp., millet and Brachiaria sp. + millet intercrop), cultivated on a Yellow Latosol in the savanna of the Maranhão State. The experiment was carried out under no-tillage system after maize harvesting. Dry matter production, decomposition rate and nutrient release (N, P and K) at twenty-day intervals, until one hundred days after biomass cutting were evaluated. Millet or Brachiaria sp. mono or intercropped and natural bush fallow showed similar decreases in their decomposition in the first sixty days, with losses of 10; 13; 16 e 12% respectively. The highest and lowest rate of N release was observed on millet and Brachiaria sp. + millet intercrop, respectively. Among the nutrients, K was the earliest released in all treatments. The Braquiaria sp. is the cover crop with greater resistance to decompose, keeping the residue on the soil for longer periods in the Cerrado of Maranhão State.