The great challenge in tropical and subtropical conditions is to stop and/or enhance soil organic matter levels and attain the equilibrium between organic inputs application and follow the synchrony of nutrient release with plant growth demands. The cover crops practice, and crop rotation not only protect the soil surface by water and wind erosion but also contribute with nutrients recycling and/or nitrogen fixing favoring following crops. Many years with no-tillage system associated with cover crops minimize soil degradation process, promote changes in the chemical and physical properties of the soil and also diminish the chemical external input needed and enhance crops yield. The understanding of how crop residues influence nutrient cycling and soil chemical properties combining the integration of residue management strategies into different cropping systems is a key to develop good soil fertility management and a good way to attain sustainable production. The crop residues and also tillage regime caused significant alteration and redistribution of nutrients within the soil profile. There are also likely effects in nutrient cycling and certainly soil physical and biological properties. In spite of the fact that no-tillage system caused a nutrient concentration on the upper soil layer, this was important and not a disadvantage for maize development. Thus the no-tillage system promoted better soil conditions for C and P that consequently made phosphorus and nitrogen more available and uptake for maize crop.The no-tillage legume treatments (lupin and vetch) showed that in maize crop it is possible to obtain the equivalence of more than 90 kilograms of N per hectare when compared with conventional tillage. The adoption of conservation farm system may be a very rational way to reduce the soil degradation, to recover the soil fertility, decrease production costs and yield enhancing. Therefore, in our Brazilian conditions is estimated more than 22 million hectares with no-tillage system, which has contributed to improve farmers (small, medium and large scale) livelihood.