Soil Ecological Strategy for the Recovery of Triticum aestivum Production

The high dose of urea as nitrogen (N) fertilizer does not, proportionally increase the yield of T. aestivum, while urea is lost through leaching, evaporation and denitrification, reducing natural microbial diversity, inducing the release of greenhouse gases causing environmental pollution, and increases the cost of the T. aestivum´s production. The objectives of this work were: i) to recover soil fertility by incorporation of Vicia sativa with B. as green manure before sowing T. aestivum. ii) To increase the yield of T. aestivum by Bacillus licheniformis and urea at 50%. For this purpose, conservation tillage was implemented, followed by the incorporation of green manure (such as Vicia sativa) and humic acids into the soil, while Triticum aestivum seeds were treated with Bacillus licheniformis. The experimental design was a randomized block design with 24 treatments and four repetitions: the only response variable considered was the yield of T. aestivum. The results indicate the yield of T. aestivum increased, when conservation tillage was applied, followed by B. licheniformis in V. sativa, at seedling stage was incorporated as green manure, and soil was enrichment from the mineralization of V. sativa. T. aestivum seeds treated with B. licheniformis induced the development of a dense root system, which maximized and optimized nutrient uptake while reducing urea application by 50%. This treatment produced a statistically significant yield compared to the control group, which used 100% urea without the incorporation of V. sativa as green manure. These data support that conservation tillage allowed the beginning of soil recovery, by inducing a greater natural microbial diversity associated with the retention of mineral nitrogen and decreased greenhouse gas releases, so that the sowing of V. sativa plus B. licheniformis accelerated the growth of this legume, that incorporated into the soil at the seedling level, its rapid mineralization to generate mineral nitrogen, that partially satisfied the nitrogen demand of T. aestivum with B. licheniformis, which optimize the maximum uptake of nitrogen by T. aestivum, while the colonization of the root system by B. licheniformis and generation of phytohormones increasing the capacity of the roots for maximum uptake of urea to 50%, consequently was an increase in the yield of T. aestivum compared to the intensive system of T. aestivum yield with the application of high doses of urea. This strategy could recover the T. aestivum crops, at reducing cost, preventing environmental pollution, for the excess of urea not uptake by T. aestivum.