Cultivation of Urochloa brizantha under different soil densities and doses of wood ash

Soil compaction is a recurring problem in agriculture that ultimately leads to a reduction in crop productivity. However, the application of agro-industrial residues from the burning of plant biomass can improve the chemical and physical properties of soil. The objective of this study was to evaluate the growth of Paiagu s pound grass under different soil densities and wood ash doses. The experiment was carried out in a randomized block design, under a 5 x 5 factorial scheme, with five soil compaction values (1.0, 1.2, 1.4, 1.6, and 1.8 Mg m-3) and five doses of wood ash (0, 8, 16, 24, and 32 g dm-3), with four replicates. A soil density greater than 1.2 Mg m-3 reduced the dry mass of Paiagu s pound grass. The wood ash dose of 20.42 g dm-3 led to the highest shoot dry mass. Root growth was highest at a wood ash dose of 16.52 g dm-3.