Initial growth of native trees on saline-sodic soil from northeastern Brazil using amendments

Salts and sodium in excess on soil is one of the main factors that contribute to chemical degradation of soils from arid and semiarid irrigated areas. The objective of this work was to evaluate the soil amendments effect on the recovery of a soil degraded by salts and sodium in excess and on the initial growth of five native trees of Caatinga biome on saline-sodic soil. Two experiments were carried out in a greenhouse at CCTA/UFCG, using samples of a saline-sodic soil. The first experiment consisted of five soil amendment treatments: without correction, agricultural gypsum at the rate of 100% of the gypsum need (NG), agricultural gypsum at the rate of 50% NG + organic matter (OM), elementary sulfur (S) at the rate of 100% NG and elementary sulfur at the rate of 50% NG + OM, with 15 replicates. In the second experiment, the treatments were conducted in a factorial scheme 5 x 5, with five native trees species [tamboril (Enterolobium contortisiliquum), sabiá (Mimosa caelsalpiniifolia), jurema-preta (Mimosa tenuiflora), craibeira (Tabebuia aurea) e pereiro (Aspidosperma pyrifolium) and with the five soil amendment treatments from the first experiment, with three replicates. The use of gypsum or elementary sulfur with or without organic matter improved chemically the saline-sodic soil studied, particularly by decreasing the percentage of exchangeable sodium. These treatments promoted increases on growth and on dry matter accumulation of native trees, especially jurema-preta, sabiá and tamboril and decreased the stress caused by saline-sodic soil on plants by increasing the photosynthetic rate.

environmental degradation; agricultural gypsum; salinity amendments; elementary sulfur