Diversification of Crops and Conservation Management in Lowland Soils of Rio Grande do Sul

The lowland soils in Rio Grande do Sul occupy an area of approximately 5.4 million hectares of the state. They are flat to mildly hilly topography soils, developed, under varied conditions of drainage deficiency (hydromorphism). In this ecosystem, the extensive productive livestock system and irrigated rice were developed, used successfully for many decades. However, its characteristics and peculiarities have contributed to the cost of production, disseminate weed seeds in the crops and degrade the physical state of the lowland soils, due to this, the interest arose for the use of new alternatives that were, at the same time, efficient in the control of red rice, economically viable and able to maintain or even recover soil quality. The search for practices capable of increasing the productivity of irrigated rice and, especially, its sustainability over time has been the focus of several studies, so the objective of this review was to present aspects related to crop diversification and conservation management of lowland soils, mainly in relation to rotation and succession practices.