Nitrogen deficiency is one of the important causes of degradation of cultivated pasture, mainly in the case of Brachiaria pastures. Soil recovery is a way to restore the productive capacity of pastures in degradation. Among nutrients, nitrogen is considered essential and largely responsible for pasture area recovery. The research objective was to evaluate the effects of application of nitrogen doses and sources on marandu grass pasture over a period of three years, based on soil chemical characteristics such as pH, exchangeable aluminum, soil organic matter, total nitrogen and inorganic nitrogen (N-NO3-, N-NH4+). The experiment was carried out from July 2003 to March 2006 on a model farm of the Universidade Estadual de Goiás, in an area of 882 m². Pasture had been grown for more than ten years and was considered in moderate degradation phase, in view of the low herbage yields. A split-plot combination with three replications was used. The experiment had a complete randomized block, 2 x 4 factorial design, with two N sources (ammonium sulfate and urea) and four N doses (0, 100, 200, and 300 kg ha-1 yr-1 ). After three years of continuous nitrogen application at highest doses to marandu grass, the soil pH decreased from 5.6 to 4.6 and Al3+ content increase from 0.05 to 0.41 cmol c dm-3. The ammonium sulfate source increased soil acidity more than urea. Application of high nitrogen rates increased Al and organic matter contents, soil total nitrogen, N-NO3- and N-NH4+. The N-NH4+ contents were higher than N-NO3- in all nitrogen doses and years evaluated.
exchangeable aluminum; pH; soil organic matter; total nitrogen, inorganic nitrogen
