Soil analysis is used to estimate nutrient availability, but nutrient concentrations are not always related to yield in most fruit plants, including grapevines. Thus, additional multivariate mathematical models, such as the compositional nutrient diagnosis (CND), which takes into account leaves nutrient concentration, and yield, can contribute to estimating critical levels or sufficiency bands of elements, as well as to detect deficiency and/or excess of nutrients. The aim of the present study was to establish CND standards, and the critical level and sufficiency band of nutrients, in the grapevine Vitis vinifera L., grown in a subtropical climate region. Leaves were collected in 81 vineyards in the Campanha Gaúcha do Rio Grande do Sul region, Southern Brazil, and analyzed for macro- and micro-nutrient concentration. The yield of each vineyard was assessed. Grapevine nutritional status was calculated through the CND method. CND-r² indices were effective in establishing the nutritional status of grapevines for macro- and micro-nutrients as sub-optimal, excessive, or balanced. The CND methodology established the critical level and sufficiency bands of nutrients more accurately than the current recommendations for grapevines. Multi-nutrient associations were more effective than the single nutrient determination in defining the threshold of a given nutrient that can reduce grapevine yield.

No-till farming and manure application are means of storing carbon in soil and increasing soil quality. However, the organic fertilization of no-till soils may sustain subtropical agroecosystems for only a limited period until the soil quality declines. The C, N, P, and other nutrient cycles are perturbed due to the nutrient imbalance in manures and their application on the soil surface, which poses a risk for nutrient dispersion into the environment. Long-term N-based manure application also impacts the apparent nutrient recovery (ANR) by crops and, hence, the crop quality. Our objective was to monitor changes in soil quality and to measure nutrient recovery from N-based organic fertilization in a Brazilian agroecosystem. A long-term experiment was established in May 2004 on Typic Hapludalf soil in Southern Brazil. The experiment comprised two periods: 2004–2009 and 2009–2020. The treatments were unfertilized (control), pig slurry, pig deep litter (swine manure and rice husk), cattle slurry, and mineral fertilizer (urea, triple superphosphate, and K chloride). Grain and cover crops were grown. The maize grain yield and oat biomass were used as indicators of productivity. The application of cattle slurry, pig deep litter, and pig slurry increased the grain production by 20% on average compared to mineral fertilization. Organic manuring increased the soil pH by up to one unit, while urea acidified the soil. The highest crop yields were obtained with pig deep litter, which increased the levels of P, K, Ca, Mg, and C in the soil test. Pig deep litter showed the highest N-ANR for the aboveground part of the plants. The ANRs for P, K, Ca, and Mg were also highest when pig slurry had been applied. The ANR values for the micronutrients varied widely among the organic sources but indicated large marginal offtake gains compared to mineral fertilization. The N-based fertilization with animal manures increased the rate of nutrient uptake by plants but led to an accumulation of nutrients in the soil, threatening the sustainability of the system. Manure applications must be monitored regularly to avoid the accumulation of nutrients that could impair the soil quality and become an environmental problem in the future.

A significant quantity of nutrients in vineyards may return to the soil each year through decomposition of residues from cover plants. This study aimed to evaluate biomass decomposition and nutrient release from residues of black oats and hairy vetch deposited in the vines rows, with and without plastic shelter, and in the between-row areas throughout the vegetative and productive cycle of the plants. The study was conducted in a commercial vineyard in Bento Gonçalves, RS, Brazil, from October 2008 to February 2009. Black oat (Avena strigosa) and hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) residues were collected, subjected to chemical (C, N, P, K, Ca, and Mg) and biochemical (cellulose - Cel, hemicellulose - Hem, and lignin - Lig content) analyses, and placed in litter bags, which were deposited in vines rows without plastic shelter (VPRWS), in vines rows with plastic shelter (VPRS), and in the between-row areas (BR). We collected the residues at 0, 33, 58, 76, and 110 days after deposition of the litter bags, prepared the material, and subjected it to analysis of total N, P, K, Ca, and Mg content. The VPRS contained the largest quantities and percentages of dry matter and residual nutrients (except for Ca) in black oat residues from October to February, which coincides with the period from flowering up to grape harvest. This practice led to greater protection of the soil surface, avoiding surface runoff of the solution derived from between the rows, but it retarded nutrient cycling. The rate of biomass decomposition and nutrient release from hairy vetch residues from October to February was not affected by the position of deposition of the residues in the vineyard, which may especially be attributed to the lower values of the C/N and Lig/N ratios. Regardless of the type of residue, black oat or hairy vetch, the greatest decomposition and nutrient release mainly occurred up to 33 days after deposition of the residues on the soil surface, which coincided with the flowering of the grapevines, which is one of the phenological stages of greatest demand for nutrients.