Cover crops and inoculation modes with Azospirillum brasilense in maize in three soil management systems

Author(s)

Daiene Camila Dias Chaves Corsini

• Document type: Doctoral Thesis
• Press: Ilha Solteira. 2018-11-09.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp). Faculdade de Engenharia. Ilha Solteira
• Defense date: 2018-07-02
• Advisor: Orivaldo Arf; André Rodrigues dos Reis

Abstract

Due to the growth and importance of the use of second crop maize, technological packages that enhance the use of this new maize season are extremely important for this crop consolidation. Adequate soil management, cover crops and also the inconsistent data on the use of inoculation with growth promoting bacteria in maize, are fundamental practices for the search for an economically and environmentally viable production. This study animed to evaluate the effect of plant cover and inoculation methods with Azospirillum brasilense on different soil preparation systems, on the development and productivity of second crop maize. The experiment was developed in the agricultural years of 2013/14 and 2014/15 in an experimental area of the Education and Research Farm belonging to the Faculty of Engineering of Ilha Solteira - UNESP, located in the municipality of Selvíria -MS. The soil of the site is of the type RED-DARK LATOSOL Epi-eutrophic alic, clayey texture, originally under cerrado vegetation. The average precipitation cancels out is 1313 mm and the average annual temperature is 25 ° C. The area was previously cultivated with soybean, and was constituted by three subprojects involving plant cover crops (Crotalaria spectabilis, Urochloa ruziziensis and C. spectabilis + U. ruziziensis), inoculation methods with A. brasilense (control - without inoculation of A. brasilense , inoculation of A. brasilense on maize seeds, inoculation of A. brasilense on maize seed and foliar - V4 stage and inoculation of A. brasilense via foliar - V4 stage) in three soil tillage systems (no - tillage, no - tillage minimum and conventional cultivation). The experimental design was a randomized block design subdivided in each type of soil preparation (subprojects), consisting of three vegetation cover and four modes of inoculation with four replications. It was observed that in the subproject with vegetation cover and inoculation methods in no-tillage system, the vegetal cover obtained adequate biomass for the maintenance of straw in this system; C. spectabilis obtained the highest levels of nitrogen in the plants and N accumulated, providing the maize plants cultivated after this cover, greater height of spike insertion; maize plants grown after U. ruziziensis showed a larger population of Azospirillum per gram of soil. In the minimum cultivation, the vegetal coverings obtained adequate biomass for the maintenance of straw; for the N content, the species C. spectabilis showed higher mean values, giving the maize plants greater spike insertion height, larger plant mass and higher Azospirillum population per soil gram; the inoculation with A. brasilense via foliar provided the maize plants with the highest aerial part dry mass; the form of inoculation with A. brasilense provided an increase in the yield of maize grains when it was made in the seeds and foliar route. In the conventional tillage system, the plant cover obtained adequate biomass for the maintenance of straw, the dry mass of U. ruziziensis plants had the highest average value and the highest accumulation of N; plant height and spike insertion height were higher when inoculation was carried out on maize seeds and foliar route with A. brasilense. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 13/26489-6 - COVER CROPS AND METHODS OF INOCULATION WITH Azospirillum brasilense IN GROWTH CORN PLANTS GROWN IN DIFFERENT SOIL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
• Grantee: Daiene Camila Dias Chaves Corsini
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate