Natural phosphate in corn-soybean succession system: influence on phosphorus availability, physiology and crop production.

• Grant number: 25/00819-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: September 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Crop Science
• Principal Investigator: Carlos Alexandre Costa Crusciol
• Grantee: Amanda Ferraresi Roberto
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agronômicas (FCA). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The use of alternative phosphorus sources has emerged as a way to return weathered minerals to the soil, thus providing an alternative nutrient supply that can enhance the productive potential of the environment. This research project is part of an experiment initiated in 2019, aiming to evaluate the efficiency of applying natural phosphate as an alternative phosphorus (P) source and biological agents for solubilization and P bioavailability to plants, thereby improving the physiological and productive aspects of soybean and corn crops. The experiment is being conducted at the Lageado Experimental Farm, which belongs to the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of UNESP, in Botucatu (SP), Brazil.The treatments consist of: 1) Control; 2) Monoammonium Phosphate (MAP); 3) Natural Phosphate (NP); 4) NP + Urochloa ruziziensis; 5) Natural Phosphate + Organic Compost; and 6) NP + U. ruziziensis + Organic Compost. The P2O5 doses will be standardized for both fertilizers and adjusted based on soil requirements for the respective soybean and corn crops. Corn, whether intercropped with Urochloa ruziziensis or not, is sown in March, while soybeans are planted under straw during the summer season. Organic compost will be applied alongside the other fertilizers.The following parameters will be evaluated: phosphorus extracted in different soil fractions, crop nutritional status, gas exchange, production components, yield, and dry matter of the production system. Data will be analyzed for homogeneity and homoscedasticity, and if these statistical assumptions are met, they will be subjected to individual analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the F-test (p<0.05). In cases of significant differences, the means will be compared using the LSD test (p<0.05).