Influence of the rainfall in the content of nutrients in litter in agroforestry systems managed with burning and without burning in Amazon

Rosecélia Moreira Da Silva Castro, Maria De Lourdes Pinheiro Ruivo, Jorge Luiz Piccinin, Eraldo Ferreira Rodrigues

Brazilian Company of Agricultural Research, Statistical Department, Belém, Brasil.
Emilio Goeldi Pará Museum, Coordination of Earth Sciences and Ecology, Belém, Brasil.
Federal University of Rural Amazonia, Institute Sciences Agricultural, Belém, Brasil.

DOI: 10.4236/as.2013.411A004                

Abstract

This study evaluated the nutrient content of the litter, testing different treatments with burning and no burning, of the vegetation, to identify which one provides better efficiency in operation and production of nutrients in different seasonal conditions. The study area is located on the property of the family farmer, initially selected by a diagnosis socioeconomic, community Benjamin Constant, in northeastern Para. Litter was collected during two periods: dry season (November) and rainy (March) in 2009. For the collection of litter samples, we used collectors measuring (0.25 × 0.25 m²), which were placed directly on the soil surface. The collected material was stored in paper bags and taken to the laboratory for Chemical Analysis of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA), which was determined by analyses of macronutrients (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Na) and micronutrients (Fe, Cu, Mn, Zn). The highest concentrations of macronutrients were found in N for agroforestry systems with and without burning in two seasons (wet and dry). All macronutrients showed influence of seasonality, which was verified by the wide variation in nutritional behavior. The decreasing concentration of nutrients was presented N > Ca > Mg > Na > K > P in agroforestry system with burning, with maximum values of all nutrients in the rainy season, and N, P, K, Ca, Na in higher concentrations in agroforestry system without burning, and showed only the Mg peak in agroforestry system with burning. The behavior of the concentration of nutrients was opposite to that observed one, for all elements analyzed showed a reduction in the concentrations of nutrients in the dry season. The decreasing concentration of nutrients was presented Fe > Mn > Zn > Cu.

Keywords

Forest; Management; Ecosystem; Seasonality; Litterfall

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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