EDAFOLOGÍA, Vol. 10 (3), pp. 197-205, 2003
EFECTO DE DIFERENTES CUBIERTAS ARBUSTIVAS SOBRE LA ESCORRENTÍA Y LA EROSIÓN MEDIDAS CON SIMULACIÓN DE LLUVIA
P. GARCÍA-ESTRÍNGANA, N. ALONSO-BLÁZQUEZ, L. JIMÉNEZ, M.J. MARQUÉS, R. BIENES, J. ALEGRE
Instituto Madrileño de Investigación y Desarrollo Rural, Agrario y Alimentario (IMIDRA), Finca “El Encín”, Apdo. 127, Ctra. N-II, Km. 38,200, 28800 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain. e-mail de contacto: jesus.alegre@madrid.org; pablo.garcia.es@madrid.org.
The effect of different shrub canopies (Colutea arborescens, Dorycnium pentaphyllum and Medicago strasseri) on infiltration, runoff and water erosion in an abandoned agricultural soil has been studied. Permeability data show that in this kind of soil, without vegetation, runoff happens when rainfall intensity is over 10 mm h-1. Intensity must be over 37 mm h-1 to produce runoff beneath Colutea arborescens. However, under Dorycnium pentaphyllum and Medicago strasseri, rainfall intensity must be higher than 104 mm h-1 to cause the same effect. For a rainfall intensity of 113 mm h-1, Dorycnium pentaphyllum and Medicago strasseri decreased soil loss between 96 % and 99 % in relation to the soil without vegetation.
Key words: Runoff, water erosion, time to runoff, shrubs, simulated rainfall.