Alterations of chemical, physical and microbiological attributes of a Brazilian savanna oxisol under different uses

• Grant number: 12/08547-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2012
• End date: July 31, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Soil Science
• Principal Investigator: Marcio Roberto Soares
• Grantee: Marina Justi
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Agrárias (CCA). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). Araras , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The Cerrado, or Brazilian savanna, considered one the more diverse area of the world, suffered late urban and agriculture settlement when compared with other biomes like the Atlantic Forest. Was also denied as a secondary ecosystem and not received attention by research for several years. Currently, this ecosystem suffers occupation accelerated due to technological advances in agriculture. Thus, information on soil characteristics and plant communities of different ecosystems that compose it are essential to contribute to the understanding of its dynamics. This makes it possible for the scientific characterization of this biome, get more consistent basis for techniques to restore degraded areas and to evaluate the impact of systems management and their influence on the soils of this biome. The objective of this project is the assessment of the chemical, physical and microbiological aspects of a fragment of Cerrado in State São Paulo. For this, in the campus of the Federal University of São Carlos, three areas will be selected: Cerrado sensu stricto, anthropic Cerrado, and pasture. It will collect 15 samples in each area, composed of five subsamples for chemical (pH, organic matter, P, Ca, Mg, K, Al, (H + Al), cation exchange capacity, the sum of bases, base, and aluminum saturation), physical (particle size, density, and porosity) and microbiological characterization (microbial biomass and respiration). The areas will be compared as to their soil attributes through analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's test (p=0,05).(AU)