ABSTRACT Paddy rice production based on traditional soil management emits large amounts of methane (CH4) into the atmosphere. This study assessed the potential of no-tillage (NT) and winter cover crops (WCC) to mitigate net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in a subtropical paddy rice ecosystem. A long-term (20-yrs) experiment was evaluated regarding the effect of NT combined with winter fallow or three WCC (ryegrass, white oat, and birdsfoot trefoil) on seasonal CH4 -C and nitrous oxide (N2O-N) emissions and on soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in comparison to conventional tillage (CT) under winter fallow in a Gleysol of Southern Brazil. The changes in SOC were used as a proxy for annual net carbon dioxide (CO2) exchanges in the soil-atmosphere, taking the CT treatment as a reference. The GHG balance (summation of CH4 , N2O and CO2 emissions multiplied by their global warming potential of 34, 298, and 1, respectively) and emissions intensity of GHG emissions were calculated. Across winter managements, NT decreased 25 % of GHG emissions in comparison to CT system. This effect was mainly related to the decrease of seasonal CH4 -C emissions (31-113 kg ha-1) and by promoting SOC accumulation (0.45-0.65 Mg ha-1yr-1) in comparison to CT system, since soil N2 O-N emission was not affected by management practices. Increased soil CH4 -C emissions offset the positive effect of WCC on SOC accumulation compared with winter fallow. Based on our findings, NT mitigates net GHG emissions in subtropical paddy rice ecosystems, but no additional effect is observed combining NT with WCC.

ABSTRACT Global warming potential (GWP) of rice paddies depends on straw management. This study evaluated methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions and soil C stocks to determine GWP and yield-scaled GWP under different strategies and intensities of rice straw management in a subtropical climate. We hypothesized that decreasing soil management intensity and straw incorporation in the soil would reduce GWP. Methane fluxes were substantially higher during the rice growing season than in the off-season, while the opposite was observed for N2O fluxes. The cumulative emissions of CH4 during the growing season among the straw management strategies evaluated ranged from 165.8 to 586.0 kg ha-1. Annual CH4 emissions were lower when soil and straw received some type of management compared to no-tillage. Daily N2O fluxes ranged from -2.8 to 201.7 g ha-1 day-1; cumulative N2O emissions during the off-season ranged from 455.2 to 2816.5 g ha-1. During the off-season, strategies to reduce N2O emissions include post-harvest straw incorporation using a disc harrow, winter straw removal, and ryegrass cropping. Soil organic C stocks ranged from 35.96 to 38.36 Mg ha-1. Straw management using a disc harrow reduced soil organic C stocks, with more adverse effects than straw removal. Soil and rice straw management did not affect rice grain yield, with an average of 10.4 Mg ha-1. Methane emissions were the main component of GWP in all straw management systems. The contribution of N2O emissions to GWP was small and mostly (>85 %) determined by off-season emissions. Yield-scaled GWP ranged from 0.64 to 1.06 Mg CO2eq Mg-1 yield and was lower when soil and straw management systems occurred shortly after the rice harvest. Our results indicate that soil and straw management immediately after rice harvest reduces CH4 emissions, GWP, and yield-scaled GWP.

Resumo O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar, em experimento de longa duração, a fauna edáfica e os atributos microbiológicos de um Argissolo Vermelho sob sistemas de cobertura em plantio direto. O trabalho foi realizado em Eldorado do Sul, RS, após 27 anos de implantação de experimento para avaliação dos seguintes sistemas de cultivo: A/M, aveia/milho; E/M, ervilhaca/milho; AE/M, aveia-preta + ervilhaca/milho; AE/MC, aveia-preta + ervilhaca/milho + feijão-caupi; e L/M, lablab/milho. Utilizou-se o delineamento de blocos ao acaso com três repetições. As amostragens da fauna edáfica, realizadas por armadilhas "pitfall", e dos atributos microbiológicos foram feitas no pós-manejo das coberturas, na primavera; durante o ciclo do milho, no verão; na pós-colheita do milho, no outono; e durante o ciclo das coberturas, no inverno. A inclusão de leguminosa em consórcio ou em sucessão de coberturas promoveu a ocorrência de organismos da fauna edáfica e aumentou C e N da biomassa microbiana, o que favoreceu o potencial de ciclagem e a disponibilidade de nutrientes. O sistema A/M de cobertura com gramíneas favoreceu as ordens Diptera, Hemiptera e Diplopoda. De forma geral, no plantio direto, os melhores sistemas de cobertura são os que incluem leguminosa.

Abstract The objective of this work was to evaluate, in a long-term experiment, the fauna and microbiological attributes of an Ultisol under no-tillage cover crop. The study was carried out in Eldorado do Sul, RS, Brazil, after 27 years of implantation of an experiment evaluating the following crop systems: O/C, oat/corn; V/C, vetch/corn; OV/C, oat + vetch/corn; OV/CP, oat + vetch/corn + cowpea; and L/M, lablab/corn. A randomized complete block design was used, with three replicates. Samplings of fauna, performed with pitfalls, and of microbiological attributes were done after cover crop management, in spring; during corn crop cycle, in summer; after corn crop harvest, in autumn; and during cover crop cycle, in winter. The inclusion of legume intercropped or in succession to cover crops promoted the occurrence of edaphic fauna and increased microbial biomass C and N, which favored cycling potential and nutrient availability. The O/C cover crop system with grasses favored the Diptera, Hemiptera, and Diplopoda orders. Overall, the best cover crop systems under no-tillage are those with legume inclusion.

A recomendação de nitrogênio (N) para a cultura do milho teve um avanço expressivo recentemente na região Sul do Brasil, quando passou a considerar a cultura anterior em adição ao teor de matéria orgânica do solo e a expectativa do rendimento de grãos. A busca de otimização do sistema de recomendação é constante e, nesse sentido, há grande potencial da inclusão de parâmetros de solo e de planta como indicadores complementares da disponibilidade de N no solo, principalmente em sistemas altamente produtivos e com aplicação de altas doses de N. Dentre os parâmetros de solo destacam-se os testes de nitrato, os quais indicam a quantidade de N disponível e são denominados testes de intensidade. Em função da época de realização, os testes de nitrato podem ser divididos basicamente em (i) teste de pré-semeadura - TPS ("preplant soil nitrate test" - PPNT), (ii) teste de pré-aplicação de N em cobertura - TPNC ("pre-sidedress soil nitrate test" - PSNT), e (iii) teste de pós-colheita - TPC ("post-harvest soil nitrate test" - PHNT). Dentre estes testes, destaca-se o TPNC, o qual tem sido mais estudado e difundido, principalmente nos EUA, pois permite avaliar a variação da disponibilidade de N do solo durante o ciclo da cultura, possibilitando o manejo da adubação nitrogenada em situações específicas. Esta revisão visa abordar o potencial dos testes de nitrato na avaliação da disponibilidade de N no decorrer do ciclo do milho e sua utilização na predição da necessidade de N a ser suplementado. A hipótese é de que a utilização dos testes de nitrato resultem em maior flexibilidade no manejo da adubação nitrogenada em milho.

Recently, nitrogen fertilization recommendation has had an expressive advance in Southern Brazil, when it began to take into account the contribution of the previous cover crop for the soil nitrogen (N) availability, in addition to organic matter and yield goal. Improvement of N management is constantly aimed. In this respect, there is a high potential to include soil and plant parameters as complementar indicators of soil N level, mainly in high yield systems and with high rates of N application. Within the soil parameters considered, one of the most impartant is the nitrate tests, which represent the readily available N and are known as intensity tests. According to the time of soil sampling, nitrate tests can be classified as: preplant soil nitrate test (PPNT), pre-sidedress soil nitrate test (PSNT), and post-harvest soil nitrate test (PHNT). Within these tests, one of the most important is the TPNC, which have been more studied and used, mainly in the EUA, because it allows the evaluation of the soil N availability during the crop development. It makes possible the management of nitrogen fertilization in specific situations. This review has the purpose of discussing the potential use of soil nitrate tests to evaluate N availability during crop development and to predict N requirements in maize. The hypothesis is that nitrate tests utilization result in higher flexibility of N fertilization management in this crop.