RESUMO A adoção de práticas de manejo que garantam a estabilidade de matéria orgânica do solo (MOS) também sustenta a estabilidade ou o incremento quantitativo do carbono (C) na litosfera, diminuindo a quantidade do CO2 na atmosfera. Também é possível minimizar as perdas de C para a atmosfera a partir da utilização de práticas conservacionistas, ou utilização de coberturas vegetais que mantenham os estoques de C do solo, sendo que as coberturas florestais são consideradas grandes sequestradoras e os sistemas florestais considerados grandes reservatórios de C. Este trabalho foi realizado em uma propriedade rural situada no interior do município de Chapecó-SC, onde foram amostrados solos de diferentes formações florestais distribuídas em uma faixa homogênea do solo. O clima do local é mesotérmico, chuvoso, e o solo foi caracterizado como uma associação Cambissolo Háplico/Neossolo Litólico. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram estimar os estoques de C nos solos e as perdas de C ocorridas em função da alteração da cobertura do solo. Foram avaliados solos sob floresta natural (FN), de formação secundária, com elevado grau de preservação; plantio de eucalipto (Eucalyptus saligna) (PE), com oito anos de cultivo, precedido de 17 anos de lavoura sob plantio convencional; plantio de erva-mate (Ilex paraguariensis) (EM), com 25 anos de cultivo sob sistema convencional (corte em intervalo de 18 meses, com retirada de todos resíduos produzidos e manutenção do solo sem cobertura, com utilização periódica de herbicida - glifosato). Em cada área foram abertas quatro trincheiras de 50 cm de profundidade, onde foram realizadas as coletas de solo nas profundidades de: 0-5 cm; 5-10 cm; 10-20 cm; 20-30 cm; 30-40 cm, e 40-50 cm, com anéis de kopeck. Foi possível determinar a densidade do solo (Mg m-3) e o volume do solo por camada (profundidade) e por hectare, bem como a concentração de C do solo nas diferentes áreas estudadas. Para quantificar os estoques de C foram utilizadas quantidades iguais de solo para cada profundidade avaliada. Foram observadas maiores densidades dos solos sob PE e EM, sendo que em FN os menores valores de densidade são explicados pelo grande aporte de material orgânico e ausência de efeito antrópico. Em FN, apesar da menor densidade do solo, verificou-se maior estoque de C no solo, com 107,67 Mg C ha-1. No solo sob PE, com estoque de 79,58 M g C ha-1, em função da utilização anterior (17 anos com lavoura sob cultivo convencional), supõe-se que parte do C tenha sido recuperada. Sob EM, com estoque de 47,29 Mg C ha-1, as perdas de C foram evidentes, com cerca de 221 Mg CO2ha-1 emitidas do solo. Ficou evidente que a alteração da cobertura florestal e o manejo utilizado podem levar a grandes perdas do C estocado. Assim, o solo sob florestas, ou o sistema solo-planta de coberturas florestais, considerado um grande reservatório de C, pode tornar-se uma grande fonte de C para a atmosfera, contribuindo para aumentar o efeito estufa.

ABSTRACT The adoption of management practices that ensure the stability of soil organic matter also maintain the stability or quantitative increase of carbon (C) in the lithosphere, reducing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. You can also minimize the losses of C to the atmosphere by using conservation practices, or using cover crops to keep the soil C stocks, and the forest cover are considered great abduction and forest systems considered large reservoirs of C. This work was performed on a property located in Chapecó, Santa Catarina state, where soils were sampled from different forest formations distributed in a homogeneous soil range. The local climate is mesothermal, rainy, and the soil was characterized as an association Cambissolo Háplico/Neossolo Litólico. The objectives were to estimate the C stocks in soils and estimate the C losses occurred due to the change of soil cover. It was evaluated soils under natural forest (FN), of secondary stage, with a high degree of preservation; planted forest of eucalyptus (Eucalyptus saligna) (PE), with eight years of cultivation, preceded by 17 years under crop conventional tillage; and a planted forest of herb mate (Ilex paraguariensis) (EM), with 25 years of cultivation under conventional system (cutting interval of 18 months, with removal of all waste produced and maintenance of the ground without cover, with periodic use of herbicide - glyphosate). In each area were opened four trenches with 50 cm deep, where soil samples were collected in depths of: 0-5 cm, 5-10 cm, 10-20 cm, 20-30 cm, 30-40 cm, and 40-50 cm, with kopeck rings. It was possible to determine the bulk density (Mg m-3), the soil volume per layer (depth) and per hectare, and the concentration of soil C in the different studied areas. To quantify the C stocks equal amounts of soil were used for each depth evaluated. It was observed higher densities of soils and under PE and EM, to FN the lowest density are explained by the large amount of organic material and the absence of anthropogenic effects. In FN, despite the lower bulk density, there was a greater soil content C, with 107.67 Mg C ha-1. On the soil under PE, with stock 79.58 Mg C ha-1, depending on previous use (17 years under crop conventional tillage), it is assumed that part of C has been recovered. Under EM, with stock of 47.29 Mg C ha-1, C losses were evident, with about 221 Mg CO2 ha-1 emitted from the soil. It was evident that the change in forest cover and management procedures can lead to large losses of C stored. Thus, the soil under forest, or the soil-plant a forest canopy, considered a major reservoir of C, can become a major source of C to the atmosphere, contributing to increased the greenhouse effect.

This study assessed the effect of successive applications of pig slurry on the dry matter (DM) production and the nitrogen use efficiency of giant missionary grass along two years. A total of 55, 110, 165, 220 and 275 m³ of pig slurry/ha/year were applied in order to supply 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 kg of total N/ha/year, respectively. These treatments were compared with the ammonium nitrate (200 kg of N/ha/year) source of N and with a control (no nitrogen application). Annually, nitrogen was applied in four divided doses, after the cutting of forage grasses, which takes place five times a year. The total DM yield did not differ between years and increased linearly as a function of pig slurry application, ranging from 2,698 kg of DM/ha/year (control) to 11,371 kg of DM/ha/year (275 m³ of pig slurry/ha/year). There was an increment of 32.3 kg of DM/m³ of pig slurry/ha or 17.7 kg of DM/kg of N/ha. The highest average daily DM accumulation rate (66.8 kg of DM/ha/day) was achieved with the highest pig slurry rate, from February/2007 to April/2008. Nitrogen use efficiency did not differ across pig slurry rates (19.0 kg of DM/kg of N), but it was lower than that obtained with ammonium nitrate (30.3 kg of DM/kg of N). The efficiency index of pig slurry ranged from 0.52 to 0.72.

The volatile oils of Dalbergia frutescens were obtained by hydrodistillation on a Clevenger-modified apparatus for every month of one year and assessed on GC/MS and GC/FID detectors for qualitative and quantitative analyses. The influence on content of volatile oils was directly proportional to the environmental variables, temperature and cloudiness, and inversely proportional to precipitation. Among the volatile compounds detected, linalool, β-damascenone, α-ionone, geranyl acetone and β-ionone were the main components, of which β-damascenone and β-ionone were found at the highest concentrations.

In this study, the phenotypic diversity of five accessions of giant missionary grass (Axonopus jesuiticus × A. scoparius) was evaluated by using morphophysiological traits. Accessions V 14337, V 14403, V 14404, V 14405 and V 14406 are hybrids derived from spontaneous crossing that occurred in Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Plants were cultivated in greenhouse and evaluated at 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210 and 240 days of growth. Variation was observed for dry matter production, phenology and morphological traits, showing the possibility of selection. Flowering started at 210 days of growth and only in accessions V 14337 and V 14404. The Mahalanobis distance among accessions ranged from 35.64 (V 14403 and V 14405) to 183.38 (V 14337 and V 14405), and three groups were formed, based on 17 vegetative morphophysiological traits evaluated in plants with 180 days of growth: G1 (V 14403, V 14405), G2 (V 14406) and G3 (V 14337, V 14404). Group I presented the greatest dry matter production of stolon and aboveground, which were the traits with the largest relative contribution to genetic divergence, 38.67% and 38.31%, respectively. Accessions V 14403 and V 14405 are the most promising for agronomic evaluations that address their records as forage cultivars.

A decomposição de resíduos é um processo biológico mediado pela fauna do solo, mas poucos estudos foram feitos avaliando sua dinâmica temporal durante o processo de decomposição da palhada. O presente trabalho foi realizado na cidade de Chapecó, região Sul do Brasil, com o objetivo de monitorar as modificações populacionais da fauna do solo e do conteúdo de C armazenado na biomassa microbiana do solo durante a decomposição de plantas de cobertura de inverno em sistema plantio direto. Foram testados: palhada de aveia-preta (Avena strigosa Schreb.); palhada de centeio (Secale cereale L.); e palhada de ervilhaca (Vicia sativa L.). As plantas de cobertura foram cultivadas até pleno florescimento e, depois, manejadas mecanicamente com rolo-faca. As avaliações de fauna do solo e conteúdo de C armazenado na biomassa microbiana do solo (C BMS) foram realizadas durante o período de decomposição da palhada, de outubro de 2006 a fevereiro de 2007. Para avaliação do C BMS pelo método de irradiação-extração, foram usadas amostras de solo da camada de 0-10 cm, coletadas em oito datas, desde antes da rolagem até 100 dias depois. A fauna do solo foi coletada com armadilhas de superfície do tipo pitfall em sete datas, até 85 dias após a rolagem. A fitomassa da evilhaca foi decomposta mais rapidamente que a da aveia-preta e do centeio, e o C BMS decresceu durante o processo de decomposição das plantas de cobertura, sendo o decréscimo mais rápido no tratamento com ervilhaca. Quanto ao tratamento ervilhaca, houve diminuição da diversidade da fauna edáfica no final do processo de decomposição.

The decomposition of plant residues is a biological process mediated by soil fauna, but few studies have been done evaluating its dynamics in time during the process of disappearance of straw. This study was carried out in Chapecó, in southern Brazil, with the objective of monitoring modifications in soil fauna populations and the C content in the soil microbial biomass (C SMB) during the decomposition of winter cover crop residues in a no-till system. The following treatments were tested: 1) Black oat straw (Avena strigosa Schreb.); 2) Rye straw (Secale cereale L.); 3) Common vetch straw (Vicia sativa L.). The cover crops were grown until full flowering and then cut mechanically with a rolling stalk chopper. The soil fauna and C content in soil microbial biomass (C SMB) were assessed during the period of straw decomposition, from October 2006 to February 2007. To evaluate C SMB by the irradiation-extraction method, soil samples from the 0-10 cm layer were used, collected on eight dates, from before until 100 days after residue chopping. The soil fauna was collected with pitfall traps on seven dates up to 85 days after residue chopping. The phytomass decomposition of common vetch was faster than of black oat and rye residues. The C SMB decreased during the process of straw decomposition, fastest in the treatment with common vetch. In the common vetch treatment, the diversity of the soil fauna was reduced at the end of the decomposition process.