Soil compaction on upland rice

Abstract

A greenhouse experiment was conducted with the objective to evaluate the effects of soil compaction on two upland rice genotypes grown in a Dark Red Latosol with loam texture, having densities of 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6 and 1.7 g cm^-3. Soil density values were created artificially at 0-20 cm soil depth using plastic tubes of 24.4 cm of diameter. Soil water potential was maintained at -0.035 MPa. Treatment effects were evaluated 40 days after seedling emergence using the shoot dry weight and the root system as parameters. Results obtained for both cultivars indicated that shoot growth was decreased by increasing soil density beyond 1.2 g cm^-3 and also that root thickness increased with increasing soil density. Additionally, superficial soil compaction reduced the amount of roots present at 0-20 cm soil depth as well as at 20-40 cm.