Organic fertilizer effects upon carbon fractions from soils cultivated with iceberg lettuce

Abstract

This study evaluated the effects of organic and mineral fertilizers and liming, on humic, fulvic, and organic carbon fractions of an Inceptisol and an Oxisol grown with lettuce. The experiment was carried out at the Soil Science Department of Federal University of Lavras, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. It was performed with 5 levels of soil conditioner (0, 20, 40, 100, 200 L ha-1), 3 fertilizers (organic compost, chicken manure and mineral), and liming (present or absent) using five replications. In the Inceptisol essay, the liming contributed to a decrease in the organic-C content in the mineral and compost fertilized plots, and increased C-accumulation in the treatments under chicken manure. The organic fertilizer increased the content of C-humic acid and the relation C-humic/fulvic. In the Oxisol essay, the liming contributed to C-accumulation when related to the treatments without liming. Liming effects and fertilizers varied as a function of the analyzed organic fractions and C content.