MINISTRIO DA EDUCAO E DO DESPORTO

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE VIOSA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SOLOS
36571-000 - VIOSA-MG-BRASIL

Viosa, February 8th, 2008

To Whom It May Concern:

This is to certify that Dalton Belchior Abdala successfully completed my course entitled
"SOL 771 Evaluation of Soil Fertility" from August to December, 2007. The topical coverage
of the course was as follows:

Course objectives:
To study the methods and methodologies applied to research addressed to assess and to
correct some problems related to soil fertility.
Pre requisites:
Soil Chemistry
Soil Fertility
Statistical Methods and Experimental Designs
Class lecture:
Discussions on soil fertility
Elaboration o f a research project on soil fertility
Assignments and laboratory work
Reading of requested papers with topics related to soil fertility
To carry on a greenhouse experiment

MINISTRIO DA EDUCAO E DO DESPORTO

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE VIOSA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SOLO
36571-000 - VIOSA-MG-BRASIL

Grading:
%
Quizzes

45

Elaboration of a research project

Assignments and laboratory work

10

Reading of the requested papers

10

Greenhouse experiment

15

Final exam

15

Score Grade
A

88

74 87.9

60 73.9

< 60

Lecture Classes
Topics:
1) Soil Fertility: available nutrients; concepts on soil fertility; reliability of
recommendations; methods to evaluate soil fertility.
1.1) Concepts on nutrient availability on the soil-plant relationship
1.2) Concepts on Soil Fertility
1.3) Degree of reliability on the generalization of fertilization recommendations
1.4) How to deal with such informations
1.5) Methods to evaluate soil fertility:
1.5.1) Chemical analysis
1.5.2) Biological essays

MINISTRIO DA EDUCAO E DO DESPORTO

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE VIOSA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SOLOS
36571-000 - VIOSA-MG-BRASIL

2) Soil Chemical Analysis: Theory and basic concepts; Soil sampling; Intensity, Quantity
and Capacity factors; Correlation and calibration methods; Soil acidity correctives
2.1) Theory and concepts on soil chemical analysis
2.2) Soil sampling
2.3) Intensity, Quantity and Capacity factors of a nutrient in soils.
2.4) Concepts on available nutrients
2.4.1) Correlation of methods utilizing soil chemical analysis data
2.4.2) Calibration of methods utilizing soil chemical analysis data
2.4.3) Perspectives on the utilization of soil chemical analysis data for the
evaluation of soil fertility:
- Relationships among available nutrient and the Intensity, Quantity and Capacity
factors
- Nutrient content in the equilibrium solution
2.5) Common extractant solutions and their characteristics and limitations
2.6) Nitrogen availability in soils
2.7) Cation adsorption:
- Percent Aluminum saturation and plant growth
- Liming
- Base saturation
- Acidity correctives: Al3+ excess in soils and thereof problems
3) Foliar Diagnosis: Advantages and limitations. Plant tissue sampling. Analysis process.
Methods for interpreting plant tissue analysis data.
3.1) Discussion on advantages and limitations
3.2) Sampling
3.3) Chemical Analytical Methods
3.3.1) Mineralization via wet combustion
3.3.2) Mineralization via dry combustion
3.3.3) Procedures commonly utilized in the determination of plant tissue
nutrients
3.3.4) Macronutrients
3.3.5) Micronutrients
3.4) Models for plant tissue diagnosis
3.4.1) Critical levels

MINISTRIO DA EDUCAO E DO DESPORTO

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE VIOSA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SOLOS
36571-000 - VIOSA-MG-BRASIL

3.4.2)
3.4.3)
3.4.4)
3.4.5)
3.4.6)

Global nutrition
Physiological equilibrium
Kenworthy indexes
DRIS, M-DRIS
CND

4) Experimental Techniques on Biological Essays:

4.1) Greenhouse essays
4.1.1) Advantages and limitations, discussions on the experiment setup and
handling.
4.1.2) Neubauer Method
4.1.3) Stanford and De Ment Method
4.2) Microplot experiments
4.3) Field experiments
4.3.1) Advantages and limitations
4.3.2) Plot size and placement on the field
4.3.3) Experimental matrix
4.3.4) Factorial designs
4.4)

4.5)
4.6)

Response curves
4.4.1) Mitscherlichs equation
4.4.2) Quadratic function
4.4.3) Cubic root of quadratic function
4.4.4) Square root of quadratic function
4.4.5) Andersons equation
4.4.6) Hildreths equation
4.4.7) Non-continuous models
Surface response models
Economical analysis of agronomic experiments

5) Fertilization Recommendation
5.1) Limitations
5.2) Fertilization programs
5.3) Recommendation tables and basic relationships (Cate & Vetori)
5.4) Fertcalc

MINISTRIO DA EDUCAO E DO DESPORTO

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE VIOSA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SOLOS
36571-000 - VIOSA-MG-BRASIL

Practice lecture:
1) Representation of the Results of Soil and Plant Analysis
1.1) Unit transformations
1.2) Preparation of chemical solutions for plant and soil analysis purposes
1.3) Titrimetry and complexometry
2) Research Project Proposal: A Greenhouse study
2.1) Title
2.2) Author
2.3) Characterizing the need for the research
2.4) Objectives
2.5) Material and methods
2.6) Bibliography
3) Chemical Analyses utilizing Spectrophotometric Methods
3.1) Atomic emission: K standard curve and analysis handling
3.2) Atomic absorption: P standard curve and analysis handling
3.3) Atomic absorption: Microelements standard curves and analysis handling
4) Carrying out the Proposed Work
4.1) Discussion on the proposed study
4.2) Soil material characterization: routine analysis
- pH
- P
- K
- Ca2+
- Mg2+
- Al3+
- H + Al
- Organic matter
- P-rem (P in the equilibrium solution)

MINISTRIO DA EDUCAO E DO DESPORTO

UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE VIOSA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SOLOS
36571-000 - VIOSA-MG-BRASIL

4.3) Other Soil Characteristics Analyzed for Soil Fertility Purposes:

- CEC and liming
- P sorption: Langmuir and Freundlich Isotherms
- Available nutrients
5) Harvesting the Greenhouse Experiment
5.1) Plant dry matter weight
5.2) Chemical analysis of the plant material
5.3) Soil analysis and relationships between plant growth and nutrient content

The course corresponds to four academic credits. The class met for a total of 120 hours of
lecture (8 hours / week * 15 weeks). Mr. Abdala obtained a letter grade of B.

Sincerely,

Victor Hugo Alvarez V.

Professor, Evaluation of Soil Fertility