Leguminosas arbóreas: interferência na sucessão vegetal e na qualidade do solo de área reflorestada em ambiente de Mata Atlântica

Abstract

The planting of tree species in affected areas aims to accelerate the successional process, allowing early stages to be implemented. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of intercropping of nodulating legume trees with non-nodulating tree species in different proportions on plant succession and soil ecology. Six non-nodulating tree forest species were planted, intercropped with seven nodulating tree legume species. The design was randomized blocks, with four treatments and three replications. Nodulating tree legumes were used, distributed in the proportions of 30, 50, 65, and 80% of the total plants used per plot. To evaluate the effect of planting nodulating legumes on plant succession, natural and potential regeneration were analyzed through the floristic evaluation of the understory and evaluating the seed bank of the planted area. The chemical and microbiological soil properties and soil fauna were evaluated as soil quality indicators to evaluate the effect of planting nodulating tree legumes on soil ecology. The presence of species with zoochorous dispersion syndrome in the natural and potential regeneration of the understory and the regeneration of unplanted pioneer species indicate that the succession process is being favored. Microbiological soil attributes were more sensitive to distinguish the studied areas, showing a precise separation of the planted area about the pasture area in use. There was a more remarkable similarity between the planted areas concerning the adjacent native forest than with the pasture in use. The edaphic fauna groups were sensitive in distinguishing treatments and followed the same trend as microbiological data. The Isopoda groups, Coleoptera, Orthoptera, Formicidae, and Araneae, associated with areas with higher edaphic quality, were more correlated with the forest area and the treatments containing nodulating legumes. The results show that the planting of nodulating tree legumes, regardless of the percentage used for planting of the areas studied, favored the succession process, stimulated plant succession, and improved soil quality.