Soil chemical properties in forestry plantations replacing native vegetation in high-altitude grasslands

Abstract

The planted forests using exotic trees are increasing areas and have replaced native vegetation in the southern Brazilian highlands, which can change the dynamics of soil nutrients. The objective was to evaluate the effects of the land use change on pH and total soil organic carbon (COT), Al3+, Ca2+, Mg2+ and K+ contents on a Humic Dystrudept under plantations established in native grassland area. The land uses evaluated were pinus established in 1963 (P) and eucalyptus planted in 1991 (E), comparatively to adjacent areas of native grassland (NP), natural regeneration since 1990 (NR), and native forest (NF). Soil samples were collected at 0-5, 5-10 and 10-20 cm depth, in eight replicates for each land use to calculate means and confidence intervals (95%). In general, NP and NF showed the highest values of TOC. “P” stand compared to NP had lower TOC, Ca and K in the 0-10 cm layer, indicating negative effects of forest plantations in comparison with natural grassland in relation to carbon and nutrient cycling. NR area showed similar values of those properties in relation to NP and NF areas. Long-term evaluations are important to verify influences of forest plantations on soil properties and identify the sustainability of these land use forms.