Hydrological validation of the high wide ridge as conservationist technology applied to the tobacco crop

José Eloir Denardin[1]; Gracioso Pignatel Marcon[2]; Antonio Faganello[3]; Jorge Lemainski[4]; Álvaro José Back[5]; Barbara Rodrigues Junqueira[6]; Vando Braz de Oliveira[7]

Technological innovations offered for agricultural systems resulting from the incessant demands of the agribusiness, and based on the relationship between man and natural resources, have made available to the farmer field practices that are potentially effective in contributing to the emergence of sustainability in agriculture. Among these technologies, High Wide Ridge used in small rural establishments, in the cultivation of production models associated with the tobacco crop (Nicotiana tabacum), grain, and forage producing species, as well as green manure plants. This is a technological innovation applied to the tobacco crop and is the fruit of consistent investment by BAT Brasil, aimed at research, development, and innovation, leading to its adoption by more than 90% of their integrated farmers (BAT BRASIL, 2019).

The High Wide Ridge was developed with the purpose of physically conditioning the soil in the planting tobacco line, with the expected benefits of improving the factors involved in the development of the plant root system, in crop health and quality, in the quality of harvested products, in production stability over time, and in minimising losses through erosion. All these benefits, in relation to the performance of the tobacco crop, have already been proven in studies promoted by BAT Brasil. However, its effectiveness in disciplining runoff from intense rain and minimising the onset of erosion processes was still unknown. As a result, the objective of the hydrological evaluation of the “High Wide Ridge” was to assess its effectiveness in containing the runoff from maximum expected intense rains, with return periods equal to, or greater than 10 years.

The study took place in nine municipalities (three in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, three in the state of Santa Catarina and three in the state of Parana), in 11 fields cultivated with winter cereals, as green manure plants, and tobacco, as a commercial crop, established on three topographical classes (slightly undulating, undulating, and highly undulating), 11 soil types, taxonomically differentiated up to the fourth categorical level, and with wide textural variation.

The estimate of the return period of the maximum expected rainfall, which generates runoff capable of being contained by the channels between the High Wide Ridges, was processed by the Terrace 4.1 software – Dimensioning and management of soil conservation and surface drainage systems (PRUSKI et al., 2009). This software was modified for the use of intense rain equations (Intensity-Duration-Frequency – IDF) adjusted by Sampaio (2011), Back (2013), Damé et al. (2014) and made available personally by Álvaro José Back (Epagri-SC), for each municipality included in the study. The estimate was processed for the full capacity of the channels between the High Wide Ridges constructed on level. The section of the High Wide Ridges was evaluated by the profilometer technique, for ten ridges of each crop, eight months after their construction. The infiltration rate of water of the soil was evaluated at the bottom of the channel between the ridges, using the Cornell Infiltrometer (OGDEN et al., 1997; VAN ES & SCHINDELBECK, 2003), with five to eight repetitions, at four and eight months after its construction.

It was concluded that the High Wide Ridge, practiced in accordance with the technical recommendations of BAT Brasil (2019), in the 11 crops established on three topographical classes, 11 taxonomically different soils and six textural classes, is potentially capable of containing the runoff from intense rains, with a return period much greater than 10 years (ranging from 253 years to more than 10,000 years), and can therefore be proclaimed, by the science of soil conservation, as a conservationist soil management practice.

References

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