Abstract This study examined the effects of liming on soil acidity and base saturation (V) in Italian ryegrass (ryegrass) and silage maize production systems over the medium-term. A split-plot design with four replications was employed on Humic Hapludox. The plots consisted of four soil management methods: conventional tillage (CT), minimum tillage (MT), no-tillage (NT) and chiselled NT (CNT). Within the split plots, ryegrass was used as cover crop (CC), silage (S), and integrated crop-livestock (ICL) system. Following ryegrass phytomass the maize was sowed. Once the maize had been cut with a silage machine, soil samples were collected from the layers 0-5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20 and 20-30 cm at 24 and 60 months after liming. The attributes pH, H+Al, exchangeable aluminium (Al3+), and V were evaluated. The highest pH and V values were observed in the 0-5 cm layer in NT. The CNT did not result in improvement of acidity conditions or V. The ryegrass as S and ICL decreased soil acidity from 10 cm layer. NT combined with ICL provided soil acidity improvements 60 months after liming. Therefore, the exploration of winter with Italian ryegrass may elicit greater benefits in deep soil layers than cover crops.

Abstract The objected to evaluate the pH and soil base saturation (V) values, during 45 months after, surface application and without incorporation of the liming materials in deeper layers of soil. The experimental design was completely randomized blocks in split-plot with four replications. In the plots were studied the dolomitic limestone (DL) and micronized liming materials (MLM) - granulated micronized calcite (GMC) and dolomite (GMD), and carbonated suspension (CS). In the subplots were studied doses of all the liming materials aiming to increase V to 50, 70 and 90% besides of control treatment. We measured the pH and V values in 0-5, 5-10, 10-20, 20-40 and 40-60 cm soil layers over time (5, 15, 28, 37 and 45 months). The MLM were more efficient to increase and maintain the pH and V, over time, than DL. The doses of MLM aiming V to 50-70% increasing the pH and V of Typic Distrudept. Despite the MLM are more fineness than DL, the effectiveness for soil acidity control in subsoil were inefficient, because theses pH and V increases/maintains occurred just in 0-5 cm layer. However, the MLM present lower gap between the V estimated and obtained, in the 0-5 cm layer, than DL.