No‐till System Participatory Quality Index in land management quality assessment in Brazil

Abstract

Abstract Soil fertility is the result of interactions between the physical and chemical soil attributes, affecting its biological component, which in turn feeds back to the physical and chemical soil attributes. The No‐Till System (NTS) is the main modality of Conservation Agriculture, essential to achieving farming sustainability and conserving soil fertility. However, farmers often fail to adopt the three principles of NTS: (a) minimum mechanical soil disturbance, (b) permanent soil cover and (c) plant diversification; therefore, the system currently requires a quality measurement. The NTS Participatory Quality Index (PQI) is a tool to qualify and monitor the farm system and requires the participation of the farmers themselves. The aim of this study was to assess key soil quality attributes associated with the implementation of PQI methodology during a large‐scale dissemination campaign in areas under NTS in Paraná State, Brazil (Paraná River Watershed 3), in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the PQI as a tool to drive the improvement of farmers' management. Spearman's correlation coefficients were established between PQI scores and the chemical and physical soil attributes, as well as the indicators incorporated into the PQI. Data were obtained in the Paraná River Watershed 3 from 40 areas of farmland under different farm systems. Crop rotation was the primary management approach that improved soil and agricultural management quality under Brazilian conditions, and confirmed in the study region. The NTS PQI provided a way to evaluate soil management quality in the areas assessed. The rapid soil structure diagnosis proved to be a good tool for assessing soil structure. Highlights Farmers often fail to adopt the principles of NTS; therefore, the system requires a quality measurement. A classification system to help farmers and agricultural professionals make good soil management decisions was proposed. The tool was trialed on 40 areas of farmland under different farm systems in the Paraná River Watershed 3. The NTS Participatory Quality Index (PQI) was used to successfully evaluate soil management quality.