Leaching of saflufenacil in soils with different organic matter contents

Abstract

Saflufenacil is a herbicide recommended for use in the main agricultural crops in Brazil to control eudicotyledonous weeds. However, the application of saflufenacil has been carried out without previous knowledge of this herbicide interactions with soil colloids, which may increase environmental contamination risks. In this study, the leaching of saflufenacil in soil samples was estimated with different organic matter contents. Therefore, PVC columns were filled with samples of Xanthic Ferralsol (XF) and Ferralsol (F), with different physical and chemical attributes. Twelve hours after herbicide (70 g i.a. ha-1) application, the PVC columns were subjected to a rainfall of 60 mm. For the evaluation of saflufenacil leaching, the columns were sectioned in ten parts with 5-cm each. Saflufenacil leached up to 50 and 40 cm deep in the samples, with the lowest contents of organic matter of XF and F, respectively. The increase in organic matter content of Ferralsol and Xanthic Ferralsol samples reduced saflufenacil leaching and the symptoms of intoxication in the indicator species. There was an inverse relation between the content of organic matter and the leaching of the herbicide in both soils studied. It was observed that the application of saflufenacil in soils with low organic matter contents may represent a significant environmental contamination risk of soils and watercourses.