Lyme and silicate surface application and water-soluble cation availability in annual crops and Brachiaria

Abstract

The efficiency of the surface application of correctives can be improved by means of organic compounds, quantified by water-soluble cations released by plant residue. However, it is unclear whether the levels of these compounds can be modified by the application of limestone and silicate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the surface application of limestone and silicate on the levels of soluble cations and the electrical conductivity of the extract from the shoots of soybean, millet, oats, brachiaria, maize, beans and pigeon pea. The experiment was carried out between 2006 and 2008 in dystrophic red latosol in Botucatu SP, under a system of consolidated direct seeding. The experimental design was of randomized blocks, with sixteen replications. The treatments were 3.8 t ha-1 of dolomitic limestone, 4.1t ha-1 of calcium silicate and magnesium, and a control with no application of correctives to the soil. The levels of water-soluble cations, and the electrical conductivity of the crop shoots were determined. Variations in the levels and sum of water-soluble cations were not detected through the electrical conductivity of the shoot extract. The application of correctives increased the levels of soluble Ca2+ and Mg2+ in extracts from the residue of soybean, oats, and millet; for maize, there was an increase in the concentrations of Mg2+; in addition to increased levels of Mn2+ in the first-year brachiaria residue, with no influence however, on the levels in bean, pigeon pea and brachiaria crops in the second year.