Losses of water, soil, and nutrients during high-intensity simulated rainfall in two soil management systems different sources of fertilization

ABSTRACT: The goal of this study was to quantify the water, soil, and soluble nutrient losses during high-intensity rainfall simulated in two soil preparation systems with four sources of fertilization. Forty-five days after the corn seeding, a 120 mm h-1 intensity rainfall was simulated during 90 min in field plots with conventional tillage (CT) or no-tillage (NT). Each system had four repetitions with the fertilizer treatments, including without fertilization, mineral, urban waste compost (UWC), and pig slurry. P, K, Ca, and K concentrations were measured in soluble form, in addition to electrical conductivity, pH, water, and soil losses. As expected, the greatest soil losses occurred with CT; however, the greatest water losses occurred with NT. Among the fertilizers, UWC was more efficient because it had the highest infiltration rates. The concentrations of P, K, Ca, and Mg did not exhibit any interaction between fertilization and soil tillage treatments. K was the nutrient that presented the greatest losses (kg ha-1) at the end of the simulated rainfall because of the highest concentrations (mg L-1) added to high runoff coefficients of 45% for CT and 77% for NT. Thus, the evaluated system with cover crops and minimum soil tillage was not sufficient to control nutrient transfer in the soluble form during intense rainfall events.