Índice S como indicador de qualidade física em classes de solo.

Abstract

Concern for soil quality has acquired greater significance in the agricultural context. Therefore, we have sought indices assessing levels of physical deterioration suffered by the soil, depending on the management applied. The "S" index, a measure of soil physical structure, was proposed by Dexter (2004a,) and is defined by the slope of the tangent line to the inflection point of the soil water retention curve and, according to the author, is indicative of the porosity of the soil, especially its pore distribution by size and geometry. The porosity is divided into two parts: textural porosity (influenced by soil primary particles), usually related to poor water infiltration, poor workability and low physical quality; and structural porosity (determined by soil structural units), sensitive to management factors and whose presence indicates soil with good physical quality. This study aims to determine the index "S" taking into account the influence of texture and structure for different soil types from Ceará state, Brazil. Soil samples deformed structure and undeformed were collected in three distinct textural classes of soils (Ultisol, Cambisol, Entisol) in the 0-0.15 m layer The S showed sensitivity to variations in the structure and texture of soils. By multivariate analysis it was observed that the S has a greater interaction with structural variables (porosity, aggregate stability, average diameter). We conclude that the S is an indicator of physical quality of the soil and condition reflects its structural soil.