Summary
Sugarcane has been grown extensively in Brasil for more than 50 years, and in the northeast from the time Brasil was discovered. Use of N-fertilizer started in the 1940's with applications of sodium nitrate, and little yield improvement was obtained in most cases. Average yield is around 70 t ha−1 yr−1 (4-harvest mean), with the first harvest 1.5 year from planting and a ratoon harvest each year thereafter. Nitrogen responses are obtained only with ratoon crops. Nitrogen inputs to the plant come from native soil-N, fertilizer-N, and biological fixation. Sources of loss include N-leaching from leaves and decomposing roots and loss of stems and leaves at harvest. There are technical and economic problems with returning factory waste (vinhoto) to the fields as fertilizer. A reasonably conservative estimate of biological nitrogen fixation holds that 17% of total plant nitrogen is fixed by the plant, or 16.6 kg N ha−1 for a harvest of 70×103 kg ha−1. Rotation and intercropping of legumes with sugarcane could increase N2-fixation by 35 kg N ha−1 yr−1 (soybean rotation) and 25 kg N ha−1 yr−1 (Phaseolus beans intercropping).
Resumen
La caña de azucar se cultiva extensamente en Brasil desde hace mas de cincuenta años y en el noreste del pais desde la época del descubrimiento. El uso del fertilizante nitrogenado empezó en 1940 con aplicaciones de nitrato de sodio que resultaban en poco aumento de los rendimientos en general. El rendimiento promedio actual es de 70×103 kg ha−1 año−1 (promedio de cuatro cosechas); se realiza la primera cosecha al año y medio de la siembra y en los años sucesivos se cosecha la soca. Se obtienen respuestas positivas a la fertilización nitrogenada solamente en estas últimas cosechas de socas. Las entradas de nitrógeno a la planta provienen del nitrógeno nativo del suelo, el añadido por fertilizante y por fijación biológica. Las pérdidas incluyen la lixiviación de nitrógeno de las hojas y por decomposición de raices y la exportación de hojas y tallos por cosecha. El retorno de los residuos de la fábrica al campo presenta aun ciertos problemas técnicos y económicos. La fijación biológica de nitrógeno puede ser razonablemente estimada asumiendo que el 17% del nitrógeno total de la planta proviene de esta fuente; o sea unos 16,6 kg N ha−1 para una cosecha de 70×103 kg ha−1. Los cultivos de leguminosas intercalados o en rotación con la caña de azucar podrían elevar la fijación biológica de nitrógeno hasta valores de 35 kg N ha−1 año−1 (rotación con soya) o 25 kg N ha−1 año−1 (cultivo intrecalado de frijol, Phaseolus).
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Puppin Ruschel, A., Vose, P.B. Nitrogen cycling in sugarcane. Plant Soil 67, 139–146 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02182762
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02182762