The use of sewage sludge as remediation for imidacloprid toxicity in soils.

This study investigated the influence of the sewage sludge (SS) soil amendment on the chronic toxicity of imidacloprid (through the seed dressing formulation MUCH 600 FS®-600 g active ingredient L-1) to collembolans Folsomia candida. Individuals 10-12 days old were exposed to two contrasting tropical soils (Oxisol and Entisol) amended with SS doses (0, 20, 40, 80, 160, and 320 g SS kg-1 soil; the SS doses have low intrinsic toxicity, which was checked before its application) in a full factorial combination with five imidacloprid concentrations (varying from 0.25 to 4 mg kg-1 in Oxisol and 0.03-0.5 mg kg-1 in Entisol) plus a control. None of the SS doses (without imidacloprid) in both soils reduced the number of generated juvenile collembolans. The imidacloprid concentrations reducing the collembolan reproduction in 50% (EC50) in Oxisol and Entisol without SS were 0.49 and 0.08 mg kg-1, respectively. However, the EC50 values generally increased with increasing SS doses in soils, varying from 1.03 to 1.41 in Oxisol and 0.07 to 0.21 in Entisol. The SS-amended soils showed 2.1- to 2.9-fold lower imidacloprid toxicity (EC50-based) in Oxisol and 1.8- to 2.7-fold lower toxicity in Entisol. Our results suggest the most effective SS doses alleviating the imidacloprid toxicity (EC50-based) to collembolans are 20 g kg-1 in Oxisol and 80 g kg-1 in Entisol. These results indicate that the tested SS has the potential to be employed as a soil amendment agent by reducing the toxicity of imidacloprid to the reproduction of F. candida.

Produção, composição da uva e teores de nitrogênio na folha e no pecíolo em videiras submetidas à adubação nitrogenada / Grapes yield, composition and nitrogen content in leaf and leaf petioles in grapevine with nitrogen fertilization

A videira tem grande importância econômica no Sul do Brasil, mas sua produtividade está associada à utilização de fertilizantes, especialmente nitrogenados, que afetam a produtividade e a composição das bagas. O seu estado nutricional pode ser avaliado pelo teor de N na folha completa e no pecíolo. O trabalho objetivou avaliar como a aplicação de N afeta o seu teor na folha completa e pecíolo, usados para a recomendação de N à videira, e sobre a produção e composição química da uva. O trabalho compreendeu dois experimentos realizados em um vinhedo comercial no município de Planalto (RS), safra 2006/07, sobre um Cambissolo. No experimento 1, videiras Bordô e no experimento 2, Couderc 13 foram submetidas à aplicação de 0, 30, 60 e 90kg ha-1 de N, sendo 50 por cento aplicado após o inicio da brotação, 25% durante a brotação e 25% durante a floração. No pleno florescimento e na mudança da cor da uva foram coletadas folhas completas (limbo+pecíolo) e pecíolos, que foram secos, moídos e preparados à análise de N total. Na maturação da uva foram coletados, aleatoriamente, cinco cachos no centro e na parte externa da planta, pesados, determinado o comprimento, a largura e, em seguida, retiradas 100 bagas, pesadas e reservadas. Posteriormente, os demais cachos foram coletados e pesados para a determinação da produção de uva por planta e produção por hectare. As amostras de bagas reservadas foram trituradas e analisado o total de N, fósforo (P) e potássio (K). Os resultados mostram de forma destacada que as amostras de folhas completas, coletadas no pleno florescimento na cultivar "Bordô" e "Couderc 13", são adequadas para avaliar a disponibilidade de N na planta. A aplicação de N mineral aumentou a produção de uva na cultivar "Bordô" e o total de N nas bagas em ambas as cultivares.

The vine has an economic importance in the South of Brazil, but its productivity is associated with the utilization of fertilizers, especially nitrogen (N) ones, which affects the productivity and the composition of the grapes. Its nutritional state can be evaluated by the N content in the foliar lamina and petiole. Two experiments were carried out in 2006/07 to evaluate the effect of the N fertilization in the N content of the foliar lamina and petiole, which is used for the N recommendation, yield and grape composition of vine, at Haplumbrept soil in Southern Brazil, Planalto city. Bordô vines of the experiment 1 and Couderc 13 ones of the experiment 2 were submitted to applications of 0, 30, 60 and 90kg ha-1 of N as follow: 50 percent was applied after the beginning of bud burst, 25% during bud burst and 25% during the flowering. Samples of the foliar lamina and petiole were collected in the flowering and verasion. The samples were dried, grinded and prepared to the total N analysis. By the time of the grape maturation, five bunches were collected randomly in the center and in the external part of the plant, which were weighted and submitted to length and wide measurements. Sequentially, 100 grapes were taken from these bunches, weighted and reserved. Following, the other bunches were collected and weighted, in order to determine the yield per plant and per hectare. Berries reserved were triturated and N-total, P and K were evaluated. The results clearly showed that the samples of foliar lamina collected in the flowering of the 'Bordô' and 'Courdec 13' cultivars were suitable to evaluate the availability of N in the plant. The N fertilization had increased the yield of grape in the Bordô cultivar and the total N in the grapes of both cultivars.