Impacts of Nitrogen Management on No-Till Maize Production Following Forage Cover Crops

Autor(es)

Momesso, Letusa ^{[1, 2]} ; Crusciol, Carlos A. C. ^[3] ; Soratto, Rogerio P. ^[3] ; Vyn, Tony J. ^[4] ; Tanaka, Katiuca S. ^[3] ; Costa, Claudio H. M. ^[5] ; Neto, Jayme Ferrari ^[3] ; Cantarella, Heitor ^[6]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Sao Paulo State Univ UNESP, Coll Agr Sci, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Netherlands Inst Ecol, Dept Microbial Ecol, NL-6708 PB Wageningen - Netherlands

^[3] Sao Paulo State Univ UNESP, Coll Agr Sci, Dept Crop Sci, Ave Univ 3780, BR-18610034 Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[4] Purdue Univ, Dept Agron, W Lafayette, IN 47907 - USA

^[5] Fed Univ Goias UFG, Agron Dept, Jatai, Go - Brazil

^[6] Agron Inst Campinas IAC, Soils & Environm Resources Ctr, Sao Paulo - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: AGRONOMY JOURNAL; v. 111, n. 2, p. 639-649, MAR-APR 2019.
• Citações Web of Science: 1

Resumo

Crop residue decomposition is slower in no-till (NT) systems, especially in high-biomass systems. Adopting optimum nN management can provide increased soil coverage and synchronize the supply of nutrients with the period of highest crop demand in agroecosystems. A three-year experiment was conducted to assess the feasibility of applying N on forage grass cover crops before termination [Urochloa brizantha (Hochst. Ex A. Rich.) R.D. Webster {[}syn. Brachiaria brizantha (Hochst. Ex A. Rich) Stapf] and Urochloa ruziziensis (R. Germ. and C. M. Evrard) Crins {[}syn. B. ruziziensis (R. Germ. and C. M. Evrard)]], or on forage grass cover crop residues immediately before maize (Zea mays L.) seeding, aiming to supply N to the following maize crop. Urochloa brizantha had 25% higher biomass production and a higher amount of nutrient content than U. ruziziensis. The N application before termination increased biomass production and nutrient content in cover crop residues compared with the conventional fertilization method (30 kg N ha(-1) in the maize seeeding plus 170 kg N ha(-1) sidedressed in V6 growth stage). Nitrogen applied one day before seeding (DBS) of maize or using conventional method resulted in a higher number of ears per plant and more kernels per ear as well as a higher grain yields of maize (13.8 and 14.1 Mg ha(-1), respectively) compared to N applied on cover crops. Our results suggest that, while both forage grass cover crops produced greater amounts of dry matter (DM) and released similar amounts of nutrients, applying all N to cover crops before maize is not a feasible alternative. Nitrogen application 1 DBS could be an alternative management option to supply N to maize because this method resulted in similar nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) as conventional fertilization method. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 14/10035-9 - Antecipação de nitrogênio para cultura do milho em sucessão a capim Marandu no sistema de plantio direto
• Beneficiário: Gabriela Riguetto Roque
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Iniciação Científica