Title:	Soil water dynamics and yield in maize and Brachiaria ruziziensis intercropping.
Authors:	SILVA, G. S. F. ANDRADE JUNIOR, A. S. de CARDOSO, M. J. ARAUJO NETO, R. B. de
Affiliation:	Gabriela Sabrine França Silva, UFPI; ADERSON SOARES DE ANDRADE JUNIOR, CPAMN; MILTON JOSE CARDOSO, CPAMN; RAIMUNDO BEZERRA DE ARAUJO NETO, CPAMN.
Date Issued:	2020
Citation:	Pesquisa Agropecuária Tropical, v. 50, e59809, 2020.
Description:	In intercropping systems, a high plant density can delay the biomass accumulation and affect the water availability to plants. This study aimed to evaluate the soil water dynamics and the crop yield performance in maize and Brachiaria ruziziensis intercropping under different sowing densities of the forage grass. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design, with treatments associated to the sowing densities (2 kg ha-1, 4 kg ha-1, 6 kg ha-1 and 8 kg ha-1) and the single cropping for both species as controls. The maize plants were evaluated for grain yield and B. ruziziensis for number of plants per hectare and shoot fresh and dry matter. The intercropping performance was evaluated using the land-use efficiency index. The soil water dynamics was monitored in two soil depths (0-0.3 m and 0.3-0.6 m) by using the time domain reflectometry method. The evaluation of soil water storage was carried out from plots with four of the crop systems (single maize or B. ruziziensis, and intercropping with the extreme sowing densities), at four different times. The increase in the sowing density of B. ruziziensis decreased the grain yield of the intercropped maize by 30.8 %. The intercropping system using 2 kg ha-1 of the grass seeds resulted in the best land-use efficiency (23 %). In addition, the intercropping treatments promoted a higher extraction of water from the soil, mainly at the maize growth stages with higher hydric demand (e.g., flowering and grain filling). These systems stimulate the extraction of water from deeper soil layers, when compared to maize in single cropping.
Thesagro:	Sistema de Cultivo Densidade de Semeadura Capim Urochloa
NAL Thesaurus:	Sowing Density Intercropping Urochloa ruziziensis
Keywords:	Integração lavoura-pecuária
ISSN:	1983-4063
DOI:	10.1590/1983-40632020v5059809
Type of Material:	Artigo de periódico
Access:	openAccess
Appears in Collections:	Artigo em periódico indexado (CPAMN)