Pedotransfer functions for the curves of soil resistance to penetration

Pedotransfer functions are regressions used to determine dependent soil properties by independent and easily measurable properties. In this sense, several pedotransfer functions were proposed in the literature, designed to predict the soil resistance to penetration. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficiency of five pedotransfer functions for the penetration resistance curve in the literature, by matching the data obtained from an impact penetrometer (field) and from an electronic penetrometer (laboratory) of a clay Oxisol, under different management systems (conventional and no-tillage). Soil was sampled between crop rows (layers 0-0.10, 0.10-0.20 and 0.20-0.30 m) soon after sowing, at flowering and the end of the crop cycle to determine the physic-hydrical soil properties as well as their resistance to penetration with the electronic penetrometer. For the impact penetrometer, resistance to penetration was determined according to the variation in the soil water content during the crop cycle. The curves of penetration resistance were adjusted, while their precision and accuracy were tested by means of statistical parameters and compared by the F-test. By matching the curves, an overlapping was observed between the estimated values, showing that the way to determine soil penetration resistance (in the field or laboratory) did not influence the relationship between penetration resistance and other soil properties. The equations RP = aUgb; RP = a(1-Ug)b; RP = aebUg e RP = a + be did not differ and were the most precise and accurate in predicting soil resistance to penetration.