Effect of a drum aerator on soil water infiltration rate in a grassland in Durango, Mexico. Quñones-Vera, Jesus J.^*,1, Castellanos-Perez, Edmundo¹, Valencia-Castro, Celso M.¹, Martinez-Rios, Juan J.¹, ¹ Facultad de Agricultura y Zootecnia, Universidad Juarez del Estado de Durango, Gomez Palacio, Durango, Mexico

ABSTRACT- Water infiltration rate in soils is one of the most important variables in arid and semiarid grasslands. As a result, any relevant factor impacting negatively to this variable must be avoided or at least seriously evaluated. It is suspected that some brush-control equipment, as the double drum aerator has a negative effect on the stability of soil structure, and consequently, on the water infiltration rate. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of a double drum aerator on the water infiltration rate in grassland soils in the municipality of Hidalgo, Durango. The aerator treatment was applied in 2002. Several infiltration tests were made in September and November 2003, as well as in the beginning of July 2004 with a double ring infiltrometer. In the two first dates, the average values were 35.5 and 58.6 cm/h in the treated pastures with the double drum aerator, and 20.2 and 49.0 cm/h in the non treated respectively. In the last date, the values averaged 60.0 and 63.1 cm/h respectively. The statistical analysis showed difference (P<0.01) for the three study dates. No evidences were found of a negative effect of the double drum aerator in the water infiltration rate.

KEY WORDS: aerator treatment, infiltration