ABSTRACT
The use of litterfall of Caatinga species in the recovery of degraded soils is an interesting alternative to contribute to the return of nutrients to the soil, favoring the cycling of elements and the improvement of fertility. The aim was to measure the effects of the application of leaf litter fraction of eight Caatinga species on the fertility of a degraded soil and the production of sorghum, which was the plant tested. A completely randomized block design with five treatments and five replications was used, with litterfall doses equivalent to 0, 15, 30, 60, and 120 kg ha-1 of N for each species. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse, using a Planosol collected in a degraded area in Irauçuba - CE, Brazil. We collected leaves of Combretum leprosum Mart., Mimosa caesalpiniifolia Benth., Mimosa tenuiflora (Willd.) Poir., Libidibia férrea (Mart. ExTul.) L.P. Queiroz, Poncianella piramydalis (Tul.) L.P. Queiroz, Aspidosperma pyrifolium Mart, Cordia oncocalyx Allemão, and Croton sonderianus Muell. Arg., with no sign of decomposition. At 75 days following germination, the plants were cut and dried in an oven for the quantification of the dry mass and total N and N accumulation analysis. Soil sampling was performed after sorghum cutting. The increment of doses from residues of mofumbo, jucá, catingueira, pereiro, and pau-branco increased the concentrations of P, K, Ca, and Mg, thus increasing the soil CEC; the marmeleiro residue acidified the soil. Grain sorghum that received litterfall from jurema and pau-branco had greater biomass and N accumulation.
Key words:
soil fertility; organic waste; Sorghum bicolor
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