Abstract

VIEIRA, Vinicius Augusto da Silveira; MELLO, Carlos Rogério de  and  LIMA, José Maria de. Spatial variability of soil physical atribbutes in small watershed. Ciênc. agrotec. [online]. 2007, vol.31, n.5, pp. 1477-1485. ISSN 1413-7054.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1413-70542007000500031.

The spatial variability of physical attributes in the soil is of great importance for soil and water management practices. This work aimed at to study the spatial variability of soil physical attributes in a small watershed, in order to evaluate the management of soil and water. The watershed area is considered homogenious, based on erosive agents, such as rainfall, due to its small area (1,23 ha), and it shows variability of soil properties, concerning vegetation, land use, and topography. GIS, DGPS and total station were used to set up a grid of 20x20 m. Soil were sampled from 0 to 20 cm and 20 to 40 cm layers. Amount of sandy, silt, clay and water dispersible clay were evaluated. The data were compared in histograms, coefficient of simetry, and geostatistical analyses expressed by semivariograms and kriging maps. All soil attributes demonstrated a spatial dependence, specially at 20-40 cm layer.

Keywords : Geostatistical; soil physical attributes; watershed.