ABSTRACT Agricultural management significantly influences soil physical properties and soil erosion. However, there are few studies investigating the long-term effects of agricultural management on soil erosion and physical properties. Here, we assessed the impacts of 20-year agricultural land uses under different management practices on soil physical properties and interrill erosion. This study was conducted on an experimental farm of the Embrapa Western Agriculture, Brazil, and the treatments consisted of soybean cropping under conventional tillage (CT) and no-tillage (NT), crop-livestock integration during the cropping phase (CL-C) and the livestock phase (CL-L), and Brachiaria decumbens pasture under rotational grazing (PP). Soil samples were taken to evaluate the soil physical properties, and 25 rainfall simulations with an intensity of 60 mm h-1 were carried out by using a portable rainfall simulator with runoff plots of 0.7 m2 to quantify surface runoff and interrill erosion. After two decades, the crop-livestock systems (CL-L and CL-C) presented better soil physical properties in the topsoil layer (0.00–0.05 m) with a higher level of aggregation. Soil and water losses ranged from 4.7 to 14.4 × 10-3 kg m-2 and 4.9 to 12.4 mm, respectively. A higher reduction in soil erosion was observed in NT, while CT showed the highest soil erosion rates. These findings indicate an opportunity for a reduction of soil erosion by 60 % by adopting crop-livestock integration comparing CL-C with CT, while livestock under an integrated system (CL-L) decreased water loss by 30 % compared with PP. This study is a starting point for future research, and the findings reveal the potential to minimize the agriculture footprint.

Resumo O uso de tecnologias alternativas que envolvem processos biológicos, com ganhos econômicos e ecológicos, é desejável para a expansão da bananicultura e a renovação de áreas que apresentam baixas produtividades. Os fungos micorrízicos arbusculares (FMAs) têm a capacidade de estimular o crescimento das plantas, especialmente por meio do incremento na absorção do fósforo (P) e de outros nutrientes. Objetivou-se, neste trabalho, verificar a influência dos FMAs sobre o crescimento e a fisiologia de mudas micropropagadas de bananeira submetidas a doses de P. O delineamento experimental adotado foi o de blocos casualizados, em arranjo fatorial 5 x 5, sendo os fatores inoculação com os FMAs (Glomus clarum, Gigaspora margarita, Gigaspora albida e Clareoideoglomus etunicatum e o controle sem FMAs), e cinco doses de P (0; 50; 100; 200 e 400 mg kg-1), com quatro repetições. A aplicação de doses de P proporcionou maior crescimento das mudas micropropagadas de bananeira, independentemente da inoculação micorrízica. As maiores taxas de colonização micorrízica foram observadas nas menores doses de P, sendo a dose de 50 mg kg-1 de P a que proporcionou melhores condições na formação de micorrizas para todas as espécies de FMAs avaliadas. As simbioses com FMAs e o uso de P proporcionaram aumento da taxa de fotossíntese das plantas, favorecendo o crescimento, o desenvolvimento e a qualidade de mudas de bananeira.

Abstract The use of alternative technologies involving biological processes, with economic and ecological gains, is desirable for both the expansion of Musa spp. farming and the renovation of areas with low yields. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can stimulate plant growth, especially by increasing the absorption of phosphorus (P) and other nutrients. This study analyzes the influence of AMF on the growth and physiology of micropropagated Musaspp. plants submitted to doses of P. The experimental design was randomized blocks, in a 5 x 5 factorial arrangement, in which the factors were inoculation with AMF (Glomus clarum, Gigaspora margarita, , Gigaspora albida,Clareoideoglomus etunicatum, and the control without AMF) and five doses of P (0, 50, 100, 200, and 400 mg kg-1), with four replicates. The application of P doses increased growth in micropropagated Musaspp. seedlings, regardless of mycorrhizal inoculation. The highest rates of mycorrhizal colonization occurred at the lowest P doses, and the dose of 50 mg kg-1 P provided better conditions for mycorrhizal formation in all AMF species under study. The symbioses with AMF, as well as the use of P, increased photosynthesis rate, thus favoring the growth, development, and quality of Musa spp. seedlings. Species G. clarum, C. etunicatum, and G. margarita were the most promising for plant growth.

Resumo O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar, sob chuva simulada, o efeito da cobertura vegetal sobre a erosão de um Argissolo Vermelho, no Estado de Mato Grosso do Sul, nos seguintes sistemas de cultivo: soja, com preparo convencional; soja, em plantio direto; pastagem estabelecida, sem pisoteio animal; e condição de solo exposto, como padrão de comparação. A cada 20 dias, foram tiradas fotografias digitais para a estimativa da cobertura do solo, e chuvas simuladas de 60 mm h-1 foram aplicadas às parcelas experimentais, com uso do simulador portátil de chuvas. As perdas de solo, quantificadas a cada 2 min, variaram de 3,10 a 11,40 Mg ha-1, no solo exposto, e de 0,03 a 0,19 Mg ha-1 na pastagem; as perdas de água variaram de 300 a 555 m3 ha-1, no solo exposto, e de 63 a 229 m3 ha-1, no cultivo de soja sob plantio direto. As perdas de solo diminuíram com o aumento da cobertura vegetal. Na pastagem, a máxima cobertura foi de 98,10%. Os efeitos benéficos do preparo convencional são temporários, o que torna o solo mais suscetível à erosão do que os sistemas conservacionistas.

Abstract The objective of this work was to evaluate, under simulated rainfall, the effect of soil cover on the erosion of a Typic Hapludalf erosion, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, in the following crop systems: soybean, under conventional tillage; soybean, under no-tillage; established pasture, without cattle trampling; and exposed soil, as a comparison standard. Digital photographs were taken every 20 days for soil cover estimate, and 60 mm h-1 simulated rainfall was applied on the experimental plots, using a portable sprinkler infiltrometer. Soil losses, quantified every 2 min, ranged from 3.10 to 11.40 Mg ha-1, in exposed soil, and from 0.03 to 0.19 Mg ha-1, in established pasture; water losses ranged from 300 to 555 m3 ha-1, in exposed soil, and from 63 to 229 m3 ha-1, in soybean cultivation under no-tillage. Soil losses decreased with the increase in vegetation cover. In the pasture, the maximum vegetation cover was 98.10%. Conventional tillage has temporary positive effects, which makes the soil more susceptible to erosion than the conservationist systems.