Evaporação e temperatura em solos mantidos com diferentes quantidades de resíduos em superfície

Abstract

Conservation tillage is based on minimum tillage and on the maintenance of crop residues on the soil surface throughout the year, thus protecting the soil from rainfall damage and increasing water infiltration in the soil. The relationships between crop residue maintenance and its effects on water loss by evaporation are particularly important during crop initial phases, when the soil coverage by the crop is not effective. However, especially regarding such phase, information on water loss by evaporation is scarce. The objective of this study was to evaluate water loss by evaporation in three distinct soil classes as well as to evaluate the effect of crop residue on soil evaporation and soil temperature. For that purpose, experiments were conducted in a set of 12 drainage lysimeters located in an area belonging to the Department of Rural Engineering of the Federal University of Santa Maria, RS, in 2007 and 2008. Experimental delineation was entirely random, bifactorial, with two replications. Factor soil consisted of three soils: (i) typical dystrophic red latosol (Rhodic Hapludox), of a very clayish texture; (ii) umbric aluminum yellowred argisol (Haplohumult), of frank clay-lime texture and; (iii) sandy distrophic red argisol (Rhodic Paleudalf). Fator residue comprised two levels of crop residue coverage: 0 and 4 Mg ha-1 of oat with two replications, comprising a total of 12 experimental plots. The volumetric content of water in the soil (cm3 water / cm-3 soil) was determined at the layer comprising 0 to 10 cm by using FDR (Frequency Domain Reflectometry) and daily evaporation was assumed as the variation in the volumetric content of water in the soil between two consecutive days. To estimate soil temperature, temperature sensors were installed at 2.5 cm depth. Regarding the evaluation of soil temperature, no significant differences were observed between classes of soil texture for maximum, minimum and mean temperatures, as well as for thermic amplitude on the first and third drying cycles, both carried out periods of increased reference evapotranspiration. The presence of 4 Mg ha-1 of crop residue over the soil surface reduced minimum and maximum temperatures, which resulted decreased daily thermic amplitude in the soils. Greater effect of crop residue coverage on the temperature of the soils was observed as the drying cycle progressed. During the third drying cycle, crop residues coverage rendered a reduction of 1,8oC in the soil maximum temperature on the first day of the cycle (soils at field capacity) and 12,2oC on the eighth day, when cumulative reference evapotranspiration reached 50 mm. The effect of crop residues in reducing water loss by evaporation was observed for the three drying cycles. Crop residue resulted in lower water loss especially on the initial days of the drying cycles. In cycles 1 and 3, such effect was observed until the third day, while in experiment 2, it was extended to the sixth day. However, when the time scale was altered into reference evapotranspiration, the presence of crop residue on soil surface affected water losses by evaporation for a period of approximately 10 mm of cumulative reference evapotranspiration.