The evaluation of litter nutrient quantity is important to verify nutrient cicling and soil fertility preservation. The content and quantities of nutrients in litter was evaluated in native pasture under grazing, submitted to burning and alternative practices, along one year, in Campos de Cima da Serra region, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. The litter accumulation was evaluated in grazing exclusion cage, every 90 days. The litter represented the dead material detached from plant and present on the soil surface after the forage cutting. To this portion, the dead material still attached to the plant was added. The treatments were natural pasture under grazing: without burning and without mowing for 32 years, improved for seven years and biennial burning for more than 100 years. The experimental design was a completely randomized, with three replications. The biennial burning decreased the concentration of Ca and Mg in litter plus senescent material as compared to the systems without burning. The improved treatments increased the nutrient contents in the dead tissues. The tissue nutrient quantity accumulated, as a result of litter plus senescent material production, was high in the systems without burning.
natural pasture; senescent material; macronutrients; improvement
