Soil physical quality is the ability to sustain the full development of plants. The aim of this research was to study different tillage systems for grain production in family farming enterprises on an Oxisol in northern Parana, Brazil, through the study of morphology and physical properties of soil. The study was based on description of soil structure of soil profiles in cultivated areas with annual crops under different soil management systems (no-tillage with and without crop rotation, no-tillage with eventual chisel ploughing and minimum tillage). Simultaneously with the profiles' description some physical properties were determined such as resistance to penetration, bulk density, soil moisture and the degree of clay flocculation. Each studied soil tillage system was characterized by a type of soil structure and correlated with values of resistance to penetration, density and degree of flocculation, and for all studied profiles below 0.30 m of depth the soil had good structural conditions for root development.
sustainability; no-tillage; cropping profile; bulk density; resistance to penetration
