Sistema consorciado e adubação verde como práticas conservacionistas para produção de moringa

Abstract

Moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam.) is considered a subsistence crop found in areas with different soil types, cultivated in regions with low-income populations. With multiple purposes and adapted to semiarid conditions, it can be intercropped to increase farmers’ income, serving as an alternative in the bioeconomy. It is necessary to define the best intercropping strategy with green manure legumes, aiming at greater sustainability in M. oleifera production on sandy soil. It is assumed that intercropping moringa with a species adapted to water deficit, and subjected to partial pruning for green manure purposes, constitutes a management practice to improve soil fertility and generate income for farmers. The study was carried out in Beberibe (CE), under rainfed conditions. The experimental design was a randomized block design with split plots and four replications. In the plots, two types of pruning of the intercropped plants (50% and 100% of the total plants) were evaluated, and in the subplots, two intercropped species (pigeon pea and leucaena) were assessed, along with spontaneous vegetation. Biomass production of the intercropped species and spontaneous vegetation was evaluated, determining nutrient and sodium accumulation. Soil chemical attributes were assessed after pruning, as well as moringa oil yield, pigeon pea grain production, and leucaena biomass. The economic viability of the intercropping system was investigated. A normality test was conducted, with transformation applied to data not showing normal distribution, followed by analysis of variance, and when significant differences were found, Tukey’s test was used for mean comparisons. In nutrient accumulation analyses for biomass, pigeon pea produced more dry matter and accumulated more macro- and micronutrients, with native vegetation surpassing it in zinc accumulation. In the 0–20 cm soil layer, for 50% pruned plants, pigeon pea provided better results for P, Na, CO, and Ca, CEC, sum of bases, and V%, while spontaneous vegetation resulted in higher Cu content under 100% pruned plants. In the 20–40 cm soil layer, spontaneous vegetation showed higher values for Ca content, CEC, sum of bases, and V%, while in pigeon pea, soil acidity and Mn stood out. Regarding root development in the influence area of intercropped plants, root surface area in spontaneous vegetation was greater beyond 80 cm from moringa. In the pigeon pea area, at 20 and 60 cm distances, greater total root length and root weight were observed, respectively. Soil N content was higher in the pigeon pea intercrop at 20 cm from moringa. Considering moringa oil production, greater profitability was observed in the moringa–leucaena intercrop with 100% pruned plants.