Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil
The main challenge of soybean cultivation in Brazil’s last agricultural frontier is to ensure sustainable production. This study aimed to evaluate the use of cover crops (CC) to improve soil fertility, plant nutrition, and soybeans productivity grown in the Cerrado of Brazil. The study was carried o...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo |
| Language: | Inglés |
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MDPI
2025
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/23437 https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/5/1083 https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15051083 |
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| author | Andrada, Hosana Aguiar Freitas de Sagrilo, Edvaldo Oliveira Júnior, José Oscar Lustosa de de Sousa, Daiane Conceicao Costa, Carlos Pedro de Menezes Costa, Paula Muñiz Araujo Neto, Raimundo Bezerra de Alcantara, Rosa María Cardozo Mota de Leite, Luis Fernando Carvalho Furtado, Mariléia Barros Beltran, Marcelo Javier Cafaro La Menza, Nicolás Souza, Henrique Antunes de |
| author_browse | Alcantara, Rosa María Cardozo Mota de Andrada, Hosana Aguiar Freitas de Araujo Neto, Raimundo Bezerra de Beltran, Marcelo Javier Cafaro La Menza, Nicolás Costa, Carlos Pedro de Menezes Costa, Paula Muñiz Furtado, Mariléia Barros Leite, Luis Fernando Carvalho Oliveira Júnior, José Oscar Lustosa de Sagrilo, Edvaldo Souza, Henrique Antunes de de Sousa, Daiane Conceicao |
| author_facet | Andrada, Hosana Aguiar Freitas de Sagrilo, Edvaldo Oliveira Júnior, José Oscar Lustosa de de Sousa, Daiane Conceicao Costa, Carlos Pedro de Menezes Costa, Paula Muñiz Araujo Neto, Raimundo Bezerra de Alcantara, Rosa María Cardozo Mota de Leite, Luis Fernando Carvalho Furtado, Mariléia Barros Beltran, Marcelo Javier Cafaro La Menza, Nicolás Souza, Henrique Antunes de |
| author_sort | Andrada, Hosana Aguiar Freitas de |
| collection | INTA Digital |
| description | The main challenge of soybean cultivation in Brazil’s last agricultural frontier is to ensure sustainable production. This study aimed to evaluate the use of cover crops (CC) to improve soil fertility, plant nutrition, and soybeans productivity grown in the Cerrado of Brazil. The study was carried out on a farm located in the state of Maranhão, Brazil, with nine treatments, fallow and CC preceding soybean cultivation: (i) Millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.); (ii) Marandu (Urochloa brizantha); (iii) Ruziziensis (Urochloa ruziziensi); (iv) Tanzania (Megathyrsus maximum); (v) Massai (Megathyrsus maximum); (vi) cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.); (vii) pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan L.); and (viii) Crotalaria (Crotalaria juncea).
An analysis for the characterization of the biomass of cover crops and fallow was carried out. Soil chemical and biological properties, soybean foliar nutrient concentrations, and the soybean seed yield and quality grown in sequence to the CC were also analyzed. Soil
microbial carbon was favored by the cultivation of ‘Marandu’, ‘Ruziziensis’, ‘Tanzania’, and cowpea. Nutrient cycling promoted by CC contributed to the maintenance of soil quality and increases in the leaf nutrient concentrations of soybeans. The cultivation of millet, ‘Tanzania’, ‘Massai’, cowpea, and C. juncea increased the soybean yield. Cover crops improved soil fertility while increasing soybean productivity, thus being an effective strategy for the achievement of sustainable soybean production. |
| format | info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo |
| id | INTA23437 |
| institution | Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina) |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | MDPI |
| publisherStr | MDPI |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | INTA234372025-08-14T14:07:10Z Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil Andrada, Hosana Aguiar Freitas de Sagrilo, Edvaldo Oliveira Júnior, José Oscar Lustosa de de Sousa, Daiane Conceicao Costa, Carlos Pedro de Menezes Costa, Paula Muñiz Araujo Neto, Raimundo Bezerra de Alcantara, Rosa María Cardozo Mota de Leite, Luis Fernando Carvalho Furtado, Mariléia Barros Beltran, Marcelo Javier Cafaro La Menza, Nicolás Souza, Henrique Antunes de Conservation Agriculture Fabaceae Soil Quality Soybeans Cover Plants Agricultura de Conservación Glycine max Poaceae Calidad del Suelo Soja Plantas de Cobertura Cultivo de Cobertura The main challenge of soybean cultivation in Brazil’s last agricultural frontier is to ensure sustainable production. This study aimed to evaluate the use of cover crops (CC) to improve soil fertility, plant nutrition, and soybeans productivity grown in the Cerrado of Brazil. The study was carried out on a farm located in the state of Maranhão, Brazil, with nine treatments, fallow and CC preceding soybean cultivation: (i) Millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.); (ii) Marandu (Urochloa brizantha); (iii) Ruziziensis (Urochloa ruziziensi); (iv) Tanzania (Megathyrsus maximum); (v) Massai (Megathyrsus maximum); (vi) cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.); (vii) pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan L.); and (viii) Crotalaria (Crotalaria juncea). An analysis for the characterization of the biomass of cover crops and fallow was carried out. Soil chemical and biological properties, soybean foliar nutrient concentrations, and the soybean seed yield and quality grown in sequence to the CC were also analyzed. Soil microbial carbon was favored by the cultivation of ‘Marandu’, ‘Ruziziensis’, ‘Tanzania’, and cowpea. Nutrient cycling promoted by CC contributed to the maintenance of soil quality and increases in the leaf nutrient concentrations of soybeans. The cultivation of millet, ‘Tanzania’, ‘Massai’, cowpea, and C. juncea increased the soybean yield. Cover crops improved soil fertility while increasing soybean productivity, thus being an effective strategy for the achievement of sustainable soybean production. Instituto de Suelos Fil: Freitas de Andrada, Hosana Aguiar. Federal University of Piauí. Center of Agricultural Sciences; Brasil. Fil: Sagrilo, Edvaldo. Embrapa Meio-Norte. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation; Brasil Fil: Lustosa de Oliveira Júnior, José Oscar. Embrapa Meio-Norte. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation; Brasil Fil: de Sousa, Daiane Conceicao. Federal University of Southern Bahia, Department of Agroforestry Sciences; Brasil Fil: de Menezes Costa, Carlos Pedro. Federal Institute of Education, Science, and Technology of Piauí; Brasil Fil: Muñiz Costa, Paula. Federal University of Lavras. Department of Soil Science; Brasil Fil: de Araujo Neto, Raimundo Bezerra. Embrapa Meio-Norte. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation; Brasil Fil: Cardoso Mota de Alcantara, Rosa María. Embrapa Meio-Norte. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation; Brasil Fil: Carvalho Leite, Luis Fernando. Embrapa Meio-Norte. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation; Brasil Fil: Barros Furtado, Mariléia. Federal University of Maranhão. Chapadinha Science Center; Brasil Fil: Beltran, Marcelo Javier. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Suelos; Argentina Fil: Cafaro La menza, Nicolás. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. West Central Research, Extension and Education Center. Department of Agronomy and Horticulture; Estados Unidos Fil: Cafaro La Menza, Nicolás. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. West Central Research, Extension and Education Center. Department of Agronomy and Horticulture; Estados Unidos Fil: Antunes de Souza, Henrique. Embrapa Meio-Norte. Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation; Brasil 2025-08-14T13:54:59Z 2025-08-14T13:54:59Z 2025-04-29 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/23437 https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/5/1083 2073-4395 https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15051083 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf MDPI Agronomy 15 (5) : 1083. (April 2025) |
| spellingShingle | Conservation Agriculture Fabaceae Soil Quality Soybeans Cover Plants Agricultura de Conservación Glycine max Poaceae Calidad del Suelo Soja Plantas de Cobertura Cultivo de Cobertura Andrada, Hosana Aguiar Freitas de Sagrilo, Edvaldo Oliveira Júnior, José Oscar Lustosa de de Sousa, Daiane Conceicao Costa, Carlos Pedro de Menezes Costa, Paula Muñiz Araujo Neto, Raimundo Bezerra de Alcantara, Rosa María Cardozo Mota de Leite, Luis Fernando Carvalho Furtado, Mariléia Barros Beltran, Marcelo Javier Cafaro La Menza, Nicolás Souza, Henrique Antunes de Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil |
| title | Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil |
| title_full | Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil |
| title_fullStr | Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil |
| title_short | Cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the Cerrado of MATOPIBA, Brazil |
| title_sort | cover crops optimize soil fertility and soybean productivity in the cerrado of matopiba brazil |
| topic | Conservation Agriculture Fabaceae Soil Quality Soybeans Cover Plants Agricultura de Conservación Glycine max Poaceae Calidad del Suelo Soja Plantas de Cobertura Cultivo de Cobertura |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/23437 https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/5/1083 https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15051083 |
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