Abstract

Cover crops act to improve the chemical and physical quality of the soil and provide sustainability in agricultural systems. Studying the decomposition of these cover crops is key to understand the process of nutrient cycling in cultivation. The purpose of the study was to assess the decomposition and release of nutrients from cover crops in an Amazonian ecosystem. The experiment was conducted in a commercial guarana plantation area at farm Agropecuária Jayoro in Presidente Figueiredo-AM in two agricultural years (2018 and 2019), with a randomized block experimental design following a 4 × 4 factorial scheme, with four cover species (Arachis pintoi, Brachiaria ruziziensis, Canavalia ensiformis and Mucuna deeringiana) and four assessment periods (0, 60, 120, 180 days). The cover crops showed a high rate of decomposition of residues in the two years assessed. The legumes presented high initial nutrient contents. The release of N, P, Ca, and Mg was slower. K showed a rapid release from the decomposition of the residues of the assessed cover crops.

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