With the objective of determining the accumulation and decomposition of litter and the relationship of these
processes with some biotic and abiotic factors present in a pasure of guinea grass,
Panicum maximum cv. Likoni,
and in a silvopastoral system of
Panicum maximum
and leucaena,
Leucaena leucocephala
cv. Cunningham, were
carried out at the Experimental Station “Indio Hatuey”, Matanzas, Cuba. The results showed that the pasture of
P. maximum accumulated 2.66 t DM/ha/yr, while the silvopastoral system produced 12.49 t DM/ha/yr, where
L.
leucocephala contributed with 75.6% of the total litter. Each pasture showed a different decomposition pattern
of the litter. Among the species present, the rate varied in the following order: leucaena higher than guinea grass
in the silvopastoral system, and the later higher than pasture of guinea grass. The highest values of density and
biomass of individuals, the predominance of oligochaeta, as well as the best indexes of diversity, richness, and
uniformity in the silvopastoral system indicated that the presence of leucaena in the grassland allowed enhancing
the biological activity of the soil and guaranteeing the stability of the system.