Effects of land use on the solodic soils of the Poplar Box (Eucalyptus populnea) lands.

1981 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
BR Tunstall ◽  
AA Webb

Information on soil changes under various forms of land use in poplar box (Eucalyptus populnea) lands on solodic soils is summarized and generalizations on the effects of management practices on the soil resource are made. The implications of the results for land use are considered and problems seen as requiring further research are outlined. Crazing by domestic livestock results in soil compaction which, through decreasing the infiltration rates, causes an increase in the surface run-off of water. These effects are enhanced by the killing of trees, and the associated changes in soil water content profiles are accompanied by changes in the distribution of soluble soil salts. Scalds develop in some areas. Tnese deleterious changes are reversed where there is shrub growth and livestock are excluded. The reasons for the development and persistence of scalds require further elucidation. In particular, the conditions requited for the recruitment of grass and shrub species, and the relative importance of the various pathways for salt movement in these systems, should be defined.

2019 ◽  
Vol 648 ◽  
pp. 1462-1475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kindiye Ebabu ◽  
Atsushi Tsunekawa ◽  
Nigussie Haregeweyn ◽  
Enyew Adgo ◽  
Derege Tsegaye Meshesha ◽  
...  

2010 ◽  
Vol 149 (3) ◽  
pp. 337-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. J. HOULBROOKE ◽  
R. J. PATON ◽  
R. P. LITTLEJOHN ◽  
J. D. MORTON

SUMMARYLand-use intensification requires more farm inputs to sustain or increase farm product outputs. However, a common concern for land-use intensification is the potential deterioration of soil. The North Otago Rolling Downlands (NORD) region of New Zealand is drought prone, and although traditionally limited to extensive sheep farming, there are large-scale conversions to intensive cattle grazing operations such as dairy farming resulting from an irrigation scheme commissioned in 2006. Pallic soils (Aeric Fragiaqualf in US Soil Taxonomy) such as those in the NORD region are prone to soil compaction because of their ‘high’ structural vulnerability under intensive management. To address these concerns, a field trial was established on a common NORD Pallic soil (Timaru silt loam) to determine how land-use intensification affects indicators of soil quality (macroporosity, bulk density, structural condition score, total and mineralizable carbon and nitrogen and earthworms) and pasture production. The treatments compare irrigated v. dryland pasture and sheep v. cattle grazing on 16 plots. The findings show that soil physical quality responds more quickly to changes in land-use pressure than do biochemical and organic indicators. Both irrigation and cattle grazing, particularly in combination, increased soil compaction; macroporosity on irrigated plots grazed by cattle ranged from 9·1 to 13·3% v/v at a depth of 0–50 mm, compared to dryland plots with sheep grazing (18·9–23·0% v/v). Soil compaction/damage has implications for pasture production, soil hydrology and nutrient movement. Land management practices for intensive cattle grazing of irrigated soil prone to treading damage therefore need to implement high compaction risk strategies to avoid or ameliorate potential changes to soil quality.


Soil Research ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (5) ◽  
pp. 509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Azadeh Gholoubi ◽  
Hojat Emami ◽  
Amin Alizadeh

Land-use change has been shown to affect soil quality and may lead to soil degradation. The effects of land-use change from natural forest to tea farming on soil properties and quality were studied within Guilan Province of northern Iran. Thirty-six soil samples (0–30 cm) were randomly collected from six sites with three replications at each site. The soil quality of forest and tea farms was determined using the cumulative rating (CR) index and the Cornell Comprehensive Assessment of Soil Health (CASH) scoring function. Effects of land-use change on soil quality or health were significant (P < 0.01) using both methods. Both methods for all regions (forest and tea fields) showed that forest land-use was more sustainable based on lower CR (lower limitation to crop production) and higher CASH scores (higher soil productivity and quality) than tea farm soils. Both methods were also negatively correlated with each other. Despite pH being a limiting factor for soil quality, it was not influenced by land-use change in most locations because the studied soils were acidic. However, organic carbon was the most important soil quality indicator, which was significantly correlated with soil physical, chemical and biological (respiration rate) properties. Therefore, land-use management practices that are continuously cultivated should include increases in organic carbon.


RBRH ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moisés Furtado Failache ◽  
Lázaro Valentin Zuquette

ABSTRACT The efficiency and suitability of different models to estimate infiltration rates in Ferralic Arenosols and Rhodic Ferralsols in southern Brazil are evaluated in this paper. The influence of nine types of land use and soil management practices on infiltration modeling is also assessed. Model parameterization was performed fitting 42 experimental infiltration curves obtained by in situ tests with a double-ring infiltrometer. Soil characterization was also performed in laboratory. The results were assessed using basic statistical descriptors and model accuracy indicators (Nash and Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient and root mean square error). The investigated models satisfactorily simulated the infiltration rates and the most accurate model was modified Kostiakov, followed by the Horton; Singh and Yu; modified Holtan; Holtan; Philip; Green and Ampt/Mein and Larson and Kostiakov. Different types of land uses and soil management practices significantly affect the infiltration rates, mainly those combination with great presence of macroporosity that resulted in an erratic infiltration behavior and affected the infiltration model accuracy.


Soil Research ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 49 (7) ◽  
pp. 606 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng-Tao Guo ◽  
Wei Wu ◽  
Hong-Bin Liu ◽  
Mao-Fen Li

Knowledge about soil properties associated with land use and topographical attributes is vital for modelling soil–landscape relationships and establishing sustainable on-field management practices. Our study focuses on an arable area in south-western China, where paddy fields and vegetable growing are dominant land uses. These are representative of millions of hectares of farmland in south-western China. Samples from 120 sites were collected according to a gridded sampling scheme and analysed. Land-use map units were delineated at a scale of 1 : 2000 from field survey. Topographical indicators (elevation, aspect, slope) were extracted from a digital elevation model with a resolution of 2 m. One-way and two-way analyses of variance and Pearson correlations were adopted to investigate the effects of land use and topographical variables on the selected soil properties: pH, organic matter (OM), ammonium-nitrogen (N), available phosphorus (P), available potassium (K), exchangeable calcium (Ca), and exchangeable magnesium (Mg). Statistically significant differences were found for OM, P, Ca, Mg, and pH between the land-use types and elevation gradient as well as slope classes. Mean contents of OM and P in paddy fields (lower and flat locations) were lower than in vegetable lands (higher and steep places) (P < 0.05). Mean values of Ca, Mg, and pH in paddy fields were higher than in vegetable lands (P < 0.05). Further analysis combining with management practice demonstrated that the redistribution of pH, OM, N, P, Ca, and Mg was mainly controlled by the interactive effects of topography and land use. Therefore, interactions between topography and land-use types need to be considered in regional soil properties inventory assessments.


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