Carbon and nitrogen particulates in soil cultivated with coffee intercropped with cover crops

Abstract

One of the alternatives for promoting greater sustainability of agricultural production systems consists of the consortium of commercial crops with cover crops, which have the potential to improve the chemical attributes of the soil and, consequently, crop productivity. The objective of this work is to evaluate the effect of the arabica coffee consortium with cover crops in the particulate forms of C and N of the soil and establish relationships with the nutritional status of coffee plants. The experiment will be installed in Monte Santo de Minas - MG, in the 2021/2022 harvest. The experimental design will be in randomized blocks, with four replications. The plots will consist of six cultivation systems: CS - single coffee; CVE - Coffee with spontaneous vegetation; CB - coffee with brachiaria (Urochloa ruziziensis); CM - with millet (Pennisetum americanum); Cc - with crotalaria (Crotalaria spectabilis); and CPB - with pork bean (Canavalia ensiformis). The sowing of the cover crops will be carried out in October 2021 and desiccation in January 2022. Before desiccation, a sample of plants will be collected to evaluate the aerial mass and to determine the chemical-bromatological composition. Soil samples will be collected at depths of 0.00-0.05 m and 0.05-0.10 m, 60 days after desiccation, and in them will be evaluated the attributes pH and total acidity, available macronutrients (except N), and particulate carbon and nitrogen. At the same time as soil collection, samples of coffee leaves will be collected to determine macronutrient contents. The data will be submitted to variance analysis by the F test and, when significant, the means will be compared by multiple comparison tests of means (p < 0.05).