The present study aimed to evaluate the spatial variability of soil organic matter fractions in degraded area under recovery by planting Jatropha curcas. For this purpose, a grid of 30 by 30 m was established for sampling, totalizing 55 points. At each point, soil samples were collected in the 0-0.05, 0.05-0.10 and 0.10-0.20 m depths. Total organic carbon (TOC), labile carbon (LC) and fulvic acid fraction (FAF), humic acid fraction (HAF) and humin fraction (HUM) carbon were determined. The FAF at 0-0.05 and 0.10-0.20 m depths and FAH at 0.10-0.20 m depth showed coefficient of variation of 66, 74 and 77%, respectively, considered high. The other variables showed mean CV ranging from 32 to 58%. With the exception of the FAF and HUM (0-0.05 m), the other attributes showed spatial dependence classified as moderate or strong, varying from 39.6 and 410.9 m. Very low values of the total organic carbon and their fractions highlighted the soil degradation and indicate the need to increase carbon inputs using crops with high amount of residues.
soil organic carbon; humic substances; geostatistics; kriging
