Vertical Distribution of Physico-Chemical Properties under DifferentTopo-sequence in Soils of Jharkhand
RAKESH KUMAR*1, RAKESH KUMAR1, KISHAN SINGH RAWAT2 AND BRIJESH YADAV2
1Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Birsa Agricultural University, Ranchi,834006, Jharkhand2Division of Agricultural Physics, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi - 110 012
ABSTRACT
Vertical distribution of physico-chemical properties and their inter-relationship were studied in twentyseven profile representing three profiles from each topo-sequence (up, medium and low land) of threeagro-climatic zones of Jharkhand viz., (i) central and north-eastern plateau i.e. zone-IV, (ii) westernplateau i.e. zone-V and (iii) south eastern plateau i.e. zone-VI. The soil samples were analysed forvarious physico-chemical properties viz., organic carbon, pH, EC, CaCO3, CEC, clay and silt content,using standard laboratory procedures. Analysis of soil pH, organic carbon and calcium carbonate revealedthat soil pH and CaCO3 increased with increasing soil depth of profiles. On contrary, organic carbon ofthe soils declined with increasing depth. Higher values of CEC in sub-surface horizons commensuratewith the amount of clay. Variation of soil pH and EC was less in lowland and upland profiles,respectively whereas in case of CaCO3, upland profiles show maximum variations. Correlation matrixindicated that soil pH were significantly correlated with CaCO3 (r=0.72**) and organic carbon (r= -0.38**). Clay were positively and significantly correlated with CEC (r= 0.64**) and EC (r= 0.50**).Calcium Carbonate were significantly correlated EC(r= 0.35**) and organic carbon (r= -0.44**).
Key words: Vertical, Topo-sequence, Physico-chemical properties, Jharkhand
of the 328 m ha of the total geographical area inIndia, 173.65 m ha are degraded, producing lessthan 20% of its potential capacity (GOI, 1990)and out of this 89.52 m ha suffers from one orthe other form of physical constraints viz., shallowdepth, soil hardening, slow and high permeability,sub-surface compacted layer, surface crusting,temporary water logging etc. (Painuli and Yadav,1998).
Maintaining soil health/quality isindispensable for sustaining the agriculturalproductivity at higher level. Soil quality includesthree groups of mutually interactive attributes i.e.soil physical, chemical and biological quality,which must be restored at its optimum to sustain
*Corresponding author,Email: [emailprotected]
Vol. 12, No. 1, pp. 63-69 (2012)Journal of Agricultural Physics
ISSN 0973-032Xhttp://www.agrophysics.in
Introduction
Land degradation refers to a decline in theoverall quality of soil, water or vegetationcondition commonly caused by human activities.The livelihoods of people are now directly andadversely affected by land degradation. Unlessthe current rate of land degradation is slowed andreversed, the food security will be threatened andthe ability of country to increase their wealththrough improved productivity will be impeded.Land degradation is observed in all agro-climaticregions on all continents. It is estimated that out
Research Article
64 Journal of Agricultural Physics [Vol. 12
productivity. Russell (1975) expressed that yieldswere limited by the physical conditions of thesoils rather than their nutrient status in certainsituations. Hillel (1980) further stated thatsuitability of soil as a medium of plant growthdepends on both its chemical and physicalfertility. The adverse physical soil environmentlimits root growth and its activity and results inreduced nutrient absorption and growth of plants(Drew, 1978; Chaudhary and Sandhu, 1983 andPeterson et al., 1984). The nature and extent ofphysical constraints are however, not static. Thecurrent scenario calls for appreciating the fact thatonce degraded, it is difficult to restore the soil toits good physical condition. Persistent efforts arerequired to arrest further aggravation of soildegradation, to alleviate soil physical constraintsand also to understand the respective causalprocesses for the sake of holistic, safe andresilient agricultural production system.
Jharkhand state is popularly known for itscoal mines, industries and metalliferous ores andhaving three agro-climatic zones viz., central andnorth-eastern plateau, western plateau and southeastern plateau. The Soils have been classifiedunder the major soil orders of Entisol, Inceptisoland Alfisol. In the rapid pace of development wehave inflicted serious damage to the naturalresources and have given rise to a process ofserious thinking to safeguard the environment andthe quality of natural resources for sustainability.The present investigation was carried out on soilsof different agro-climatic zones of the state witha view to study the depth-wise distribution ofphysico-chemical properties under different topo-sequence in soils of Jharkhand.
Material and Methods
Study of soil profile: Three soil profile from eachtopo-sequence of three ago-climatic zones viz.zone (iv) i.e. central and north-eastern plateau(Baliapur), zone (v) i.e. western plateau (Bagru)and zone (vi) south eastern plateau (Moshabani)were examined. Soil taxonomy of pedonscollected from Baliapur, Bagru and Mosabaniwere Fine, mixed, hyperthermic AericEndoaqualfs (order: Alfisol), Fine loamy, mixed,
hyperthermic Typic Haplustepts (order:Inceptisol) and Fine loamy, mixed, hyperthermicTypic Plinthustalfs (order: Alfisol) respectively.After spot studying of some morphologicalcharacters, soil samples were collected fromdifferent depth intervals and also on the basis ofdiagnostic horizons.
Geology and Soils: Baliapur (zone-IV) weregeologically comprised with Archean granites andgneisses. Gondwana rock formation occurs inpatches.
Bagru (zone-V) were geologically comprisedwith Archean granites and gneisses. In theuplands considerable thickness of laterite ofPleistocene age was found in the granite in theGranite and Gneisses tracts. Alluvium of therecent to sub-recent age was found in the rivervalley. The most important mineral was bauxite.Other minerals were feldspar, fire clay and chinaclay and had less economic importance.
Mosabani (zone-VI) were geologicallycomprised with granites gneiss and schist.Formations of igneous, sedimentary andmetamorphic rocks of Dharwarian period werefound at places. Due to varied landscape, thecoverage of forest was found in differentproportion in different areas. Plain areas werequite productive for agriculture.
Analysis of soil samples: The soil samples werecollected according to the method described byJackson (1973). For knowing the various physico-chemicals properties, the soil samples wereanalysed with standard laboratory procedures.Mechanical analysis was done by the internationalpipette method as described by Piper (1966) andthe textural class was found out from texturaltriangle. Soil – water suspension of 1:2.5 wereused for soil reaction (pH) with a pH meter asdescribed by Jackson (1973) and its clearsupernatant solution used in electricalconductivity (EC) determination by EC meter(Chopra and Kanwar, 1982). Organic carbon wasdetermined by Walkley and Black’s (1934)chromic acid digestion rapid titration methodfollowing the procedure outlined by Jackson(1958). By leaching the soil with neutral normal
2012] Physico-Chemical Properties under Different Topo-sequence in Soils of Jharkhand 65
ammonium acetate solution, cation exchangecapacity (CEC) was determined as described byJackson (1967). Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) wasdetermined by Piper’s (1942) rapid titrationmethod.
Results and Discussion
Soil physical and chemical properties arecomplex, often non-linearly related, and spatiallyand temporally dynamic. Vertical distribution ofphysico-chemical properties in different horizonsof soil profiles influence the inherent capacity ofsoil to supply nutrients to plants (Singh et al.1989). The relative mobility and availability ofnutrients in the soils is primarily restricted tosurface horizon.
Soil reaction: The data recorded (Table 1) ofupland pedons of Baliapur (zone-IV), Bagru(zone-V) and Mosabani (zone-VI) revealed anincreasing trends of soil pH with increasing depthwhich varied from 4.8 to 6.8, 5.3 to 6.25 and4.74 to 5.86, respectively while in midland pedons(Table 2), pH increased from 4.4 to 7.25, 5.0 to5.4 and 4.34 to 5.7 with increasing depthintervals, respectively. Similarly in lowlandpedons (Table 3), pH increased from 6.8 to 7.6,5.4 to 6.0 and 5.0 to 6.3 with depth intervals ofzone IV (Baliapur), V(Bagru) and VI (Mosabani),respectively. Soil pH of sub-surface horizons wasfound to have higher pH values than surfacehorizons in all topo-sequence. Similar results wereobtained by Kaistha and Gupta (1994). Leachingof bases under high rainfall conditions might be
Table 1. Physico-chemical properties in upland soil profiles under different agro-climatic zones of Jharkhand
Depth pH EC OC CaCO3 CEC Clay Sand Silt Texture(cm) (1:2.5) (dSm-1) (g kg-1) (%) cmol(p+)kg-1 (%) (%) (%)
A. Central and north-eastern plateau (zone IV)0-20 4.80 0.50 3.40 0.3 5.12 13.44 73.28 13.28 SL20-40 5.50 0.25 1.20 0.45 4.90 9.44 75.28 15.28 SL40-57 5.60 0.34 0.80 0.6 7.20 15.44 69.28 15.28 SL57-87 5.80 0.49 0.80 0.7 10.39 25.44 52.28 22.28 SCL87-117 6.60 0.40 0.30 0.8 8.15 17.44 57.28 25.28 SL117+ 6.80 0.32 0.50 0.81 7.90 15.44 59.28 25.28 SL
B. Western plateau (zone V)0-14 5.30 0.34 2.00 0.50 5.50 15.72 70.00 14.28 SL14-47 6.24 0.37 1.40 0.70 5.90 10.72 72.00 17.28 SL47-67 6.29 0.44 0.60 0.75 6.50 12.72 67.00 20.28 SL67-93 6.30 0.42 0.08 0.80 5.50 14.72 75.00 10.28 LS93-121 5.58 0.47 0.05 0.60 6.40 12.72 71.00 16.28 SL121-165+ 6.25 0.51 0.05 0.71 5.10 6.72 79.00 14.28 LS
C. South-eastern plateau (zone VI)0-20 4.74 0.57 3.40 0.61 7.90 14.44 65.28 20.28 SL20-45 6.70 0.80 1.12 0.90 7.80 13.44 49.28 37.28 L45-80 5.78 1.22 0.80 0.75 10.80 21.44 39.28 39.28 L80-126 5.79 1.41 0.80 0.80 11.43 27.44 34.28 38.28 CL126-144 5.61 1.17 0.80 0.58 10.90 19.44 43.28 37.28 L144+ 5.86 1.40 0.60 0.82 8.29 19.44 51.28 29.28 SL
SL- Sandy loam, SCL- Sandy clay loam, LS- Loamy sand, L-Loamy
66 Journal of Agricultural Physics [Vol. 12
Table 2. Physico-chemical properties in midland soil profiles under different agro-climatic zones of Jharkhand
Depth pH EC OC CaCO3 CEC Clay Sand Silt Texture(cm) (1:2.5) (dSm-1) (g kg-1) (%) cmol(p+)kg-1 (%) (%) (%)
A. Central and north-eastern plateau (zone IV)0-15 4.40 0.49 4.70 0.4 5.32 19.72 66.72 13.56 SL15-30 5.90 0.36 1.70 0.7 5.21 15.72 66.72 17.56 SL30-50 6.20 0.38 0.30 0.72 7.70 20.72 67.72 11.56 SCL50-65 6.30 0.48 0.80 0.75 5.10 8.72 76.72 14.56 SL65-95 7.20 1.00 0.30 0.8 6.20 12.72 72.72 14.56 SL95+ 7.25 0.90 0.20 0.81 7.20 16.72 66.72 16.56 SL
B. Western plateau (zone V)0-13 5.00 0.32 2.10 0.40 5.82 15.00 52.70 32.30 SL13-34 5.30 0.28 1.50 0.45 6.10 18.00 46.00 36.00 L34-58 5.30 0.51 0.70 0.48 9.95 29.00 35.00 36.00 CL58-121 5.90 0.51 0.50 0.70 9.96 31.00 32.00 37.00 CL121-175 5.40 0.66 0.20 0.50 9.50 26.00 45.00 29.00 L
C. South-eastern plateau (zone VI)0-18 4.34 2.29 5.90 0.58 5.50 32.44 39.56 28.00 CL18-48 6.20 1.00 2.10 0.85 6.20 31.44 34.56 34.00 CL48-73 5.90 1.23 1.20 0.83 10.70 30.44 29.56 40.00 CL73-98 7.30 1.51 0.80 0.91 9.78 28.44 33.56 38.00 CL98-139 6.30 1.60 0.90 0.88 8.39 2]8.44 34.56 37.00 CL139-174 5.70 1.13 0.50 0.74 7.36 21.44 41.28 37.28 L
SL- Sandy loam, SCL- Sandy clay loam, CL- Clay loam, L-Loamy
the primary reason for acidic soil reactions.Increase in soil pH in deeper horizons indicatesaccumulation of bases. Lowland profiles showvery low range of variation as compared to uplandand midland.
Electrical conductivity: Electrical conductivityhas generally been associated with determiningsoil salinity; however, EC also can serve as ameasure of soluble nutrients (Smith and Doran,1996) for both cations and anions and is useful inmonitoring the mineralization of organic matterin soil (De Neve et al., 2000). EC of uplandpedons of Baliapur (zone IV), Bagru (zone V)and Mosabani (zone VI) varied from 0.32 to 0.50,0.34 to 0.51 and 0.57 to 1.40 dSm-1; in midlandpedons 0.49 to 1.00, 0.32 to 0.66 and 1.60 to2.29 dSm-1 while in lowland pedons, 0.60 to 1.49,0.30 to 0.60 and 0.71 to 1.27 dSm-1 vary,
respectively (Tables 1,2,3). Electrical conductivityvaries with depth and its range of variation wasless in upland profile, probably occurred due toslope of land surface, high permeability and highrainfall, responsible to leach out alkali andalkaline bases. Similar results were found byDutta and Ram (1993).
Organic carbon: Organic carbon of uplandpedons of Baliapur (zone-IV), Bagru (zone-V)and Mosabani (zone-VI) varied from 3.4 to 0.5, 2to 0.05 and 3.4 to 0.6 gkg-1, in midland pedons4.7 to 0.2, 2.1 to 0.2 and 5.9 to 0.5 gkg-1 andsimilarly in lowland pedons 7.4 to 0.2, 5.3 to 0.1and 5.0 to 0.1 gkg-1, respectively. Organic carbondecreases with depth in soil profiles and resultswere matched with the findings of Tripathi et al.(1994) and Kumar et al. (2002). Soil texture hasa strong influence on soils’ ability to store and
2012] Physico-Chemical Properties under Different Topo-sequence in Soils of Jharkhand 67
accrue soil organic carbon (Gili et al., 2010) butit* distribution reflects a combination of soilphysical properties, biomass inputs as well asdecomposition rates which are a function ofclimatic conditions (Angers and Eriksen-Hamel,2008).
Calcium carbonate: Calcium carbonate of uplandpedons of Baliapur (zone-IV), Bagru (zone-V)and Mosabani (zone-VI) increased from 0.3 to0.81, 0.5 to 0.71 and 0.61 to 0.82 %; in midlandpedons 0.4 to 0.81, 0.4 to 0.7 and 0.58 to 0.91 %and in lowland pedons 0.6 to 0.88, 0.45 to 0.8and 0.7 to 0.87 %, respectively. Higher amountof calcium carbonate was assigned with depth,which was indicated by the process of leachingof calcium and subsequently precipitated ascarbonate at a lower depth. Similar results werealso registered by Gupta et al. (2003). Leaching
of CaCO3 might be due to high permeability andhigh rainfall. Due to soluble nature of CaCO3,variation of its amount in profile was more inupland in comparison to midland and lowland.
Cation exchange capacity: Cation exchangecapacity of upland pedons of Baliapur (zone-IV),Bagru (zone-V) and Mosabani (zone-VI) variedfrom 5.12 to 10.39, 5.5 to 6.5 and 7.9 to 11.43Cmol(P+)kg-1; in midland pedons 5.32 to 7.77,5.82 to 9.96 and 5.5 to 10.7 Cmol(P+)kg-1 andsimilarly in lowland pedons 2.67 to 9.6, 5.64 to9.12 and 6.8 to 8.01 Cmol(P+)kg-1, respectively.Higher values of CEC in sub-surface horizonscorrespond with the amount of clay. The CEC inthese soils might be attributed to clay content asthe organic carbon content was very low in lowerlayers. Similar results were observed by Sahu andMishra (1994).
Table 3. Physico-chemical properties in lowland soil profiles under different agro-climatic zones of Jharkhand
Depth pH EC OC CaCO3 CEC Clay Sand Silt Texture(cm) (1:2.5) (dSm-1) (g kg-1) (%) cmol(p+)kg-1 (%) (%) (%)
A. Central and north-eastern plateau (zone IV)0-15 6.80 1.49 7.40 0.60 5.60 26.44 51.56 22.00 SCL15-30 7.60 1.02 2.60 0.88 9.60 17.44 52.56 30.00 SL30-45 7.50 1.10 0.90 0.84 4.41 15.44 68.56 16.00 SL45-75 7.60 0.70 0.20 0.88 3.60 5.44 92.56 2.00 S75-100 6.84 0.55 0.20 0.70 2.67 5.44 92.56 2.00 S100+ 6.90 0.60 0.20 0.75 3.29 5.44 85.56 9.00 LS
B. Western plateau (zone V)0-20 5.40 0.30 5.30 0.45 5.64 19.44 60.28 20.28 SL20-46 5.50 0.40 3.10 0.50 6.50 18.44 51.28 30.28 SL46-75 5.60 0.53 0.50 0.55 8.10 20.44 47.28 32.28 L75-121 5.90 0.55 0.20 0.70 9.00 26.44 36.28 37.28 L121-153+ 6.00 0.60 0.10 0.80 9.12 25.44 35.28 39.28 L
C. South-eastern plateau (zone VI)0-15 5.20 1.27 5.00 0.70 6.80 24.44 50.28 25.28 SCL15-35 5.00 0.63 1.60 0.59 6.20 11.44 74.28 14.28 SL35-60 5.66 0.53 0.80 0.73 6.21 11.44 67.28 21.28 SL60-93 6.30 0.45 0.70 0.87 5.80 7.44 79.28 13.28 SL93-133 5.20 0.55 0.80 0.71 7.37 11.44 65.28 23.28 SL133-158 5.80 0.69 0.80 0.85 8.01 17.44 58.56 24.00 SL158+ 5.70 0.71 0.10 0.74 7.70 9.44 77.28 13.28 SL
SL- Sandy loam, SCL- Sandy clay loam, LS- Loamy sand, L-Loamy, S- Sandy
68 Journal of Agricultural Physics [Vol. 12
Relationship among physico-chemicalproperties: Inter-correlation studies betweenphysic-chemical properties (Table 4) revealed thatsoil pH were significantly correlated with CaCO3
(r=0.72**) and organic carbon (r=-0.38**).Electrical conductivity were positively andsignificantly correlated with CaCO3 (r=0.35**)and clay (r=0.50**). Organic carbon and CaCO3
were positively and significantly correlated(r=0.44**). CEC was positively and significantlycorrelated with clay (r=0.64**).
Conclusions
Thus profile study showed an increase of soilpH and CaCO3 with increasing depth of profiles.On contrary, organic carbon of the soils declinedwith increasing depth. Higher values of CEC insub-surface horizons commensurate with theamount of clay. Correlation matrix indicated thatsoil pH were significantly correlated with CaCO3
(r=0.72**) and organic carbon (r=-0.38**). Claywere positively and significantly correlated withCEC (r= 0.64**) and EC (r=0.50**). CaCO3 weresignificantly correlated EC(r= 0.36**) andOrganic carbon (r=-0.44**). Lowland profilesshow very low range of variation of soil pH ascompared to upland and midland whereas uplandprofiles show more variation of CaCO3 and lessvariation of electrical conductivity.
References
Angers, D.A. and Eriksen-Hamel, N.S. 2008. Full-in-version tillage and organic carbon distribution
in soil profiles: a meta-analysis. Soil Sci. Soc. ofAm. Jour. 72(5): 1370-1374.
Chaudhary, T.N. and Sandhu, K.S., 1983. Soil physi-cal environment and root growth. Adv. Soil Sci.I: 1-43.
Chopra, S.L. and Kanwar, J.S. 1982. Analytical Agri-cultural Chemistry, Kalyani Publishers, NewDelhi.
De Neve, S., Van De Steene, J., Hartman, R. andHofman, G. 2000. Using time domain reflecto-metry for monitoring mineralization of nitrogenfrom soil organic matter. Eu. J. Soil Sci. 51:295-304.
Drew, M.C. 1978. Root development and activities.In: R.A. Perry and D.W. Goodall (Ed.), Arid-land Ecosystems. Int. BioI. Prog. CambridgeUniversity Press, New York, I: 573-606.
Dutta, M. and Ram, M. 1993. Status of micronutrientin some soil series of Tripura. J. Ind. Soc. SoilSci. 41(4): 776-777.
Gili, A.A., Trucco, R., Niveyro, S., Balzarini, M.,Estelrich, D., Quiroga, A. and Noellmeyer, E.2010. Soil texture and carbon dynamics in sa-vannah vegetation patches of Central Argentina.Soil Science Society of America Journal, 74(2):647-657.
Govt. of India 1990. Indian agriculture in brief, 23rdedition, min. of Agric. & Cooperation, NewDelhi, pp 160.
Gupta, N., Trivadi, S.K., Bansal, K.N. and Kaul, R.K.2003. Vertical distribution of micronutrient cat-ions in some soil series of Northern MadhyaPradesh. J. Ind. Soc. Soil Sci. 51(4): 517-522.
Table 4. Correlation coefficient (r) between physico-chemical properties of soil profile
pH EC OC CaCO3 CEC Clay Sand
EC 0.11 1OC -0.38** 0.30 1CaCO3 0.72** 0.35** -0.44** 1CEC -0.08 0.28* -0.21 0.20 1Clay -0.23 0.50** 0.29* -0.04 0.64** 1Sand 0.19 -0.48** -0.13 -0.06 -0.76** -0.90** 1Silt -0.16 0.40** 0.01 0.09 0.76** 0.73** 0.95**
*Significant at 5% level of significance**Significant at 1% level of significance
2012] Physico-Chemical Properties under Different Topo-sequence in Soils of Jharkhand 69
Hillel, D. 1980. Fundamentals of Soil Physics. Aca-demic Press, New York, pp.7-8.
Jackson, M.L. 1958. Organic matter determination forsoils. In: Soil chemical analysis. Prentice-Hall,Englewood Cliffs, NJ, pp 205-226.
Jackson, M.L. 1967, 1973. Soil Chemical Analysis,New Delhi Prentice Hall of India.
Kaistha, B.P. and Gupta, R.D. 1994. Morphology andcharacteristics of a few Entisols and Inceptisolsof North-Western Himalayan region. J. Ind. Soc.Soil Sci. 42(1): 100-104.
Painuli, D.K. and Yadav, R.P. 1998. Tillage require-ments of Indian soils. In: 50 Years of NaturalResource Management Research (Eds: G.B.Singh and B.R. Sharma). Div. Of Natural Re-source Management, ICAR, New Delhi, pp 245-262.
Peterson, C.M., Klepper, B., Pumphrey, F.V. andRickman, R.W. 1984. Restricted rooting de-creases tiltering and growth of winter wheat.Agron. J. 76: 861-863.
Piper, C.S. 1942. “Calcium carbonate- Rapid titrationmethod”. In: Soil and Plant Analysis. A mono-graph from the waste Agricultural ResarchInstute, Adelaide, Australia. Pub. The Univer-sity of Adelaid, Adelaid. pp. 135-136.
Piper, C.S. 1966. Soil and Plant analysis. Hans Pub-lisher, Bombay.
Russell, E.W. 1975. Opening address in Soil PhysicalConditions and Crop Production. “Tech. Bull.29, Her Majesty’s Stationmy Office, London.
Sahu, G.C. and Mishra, A.A. 1994. Morphology, char-acteristics and classification of soils under Sisal(Agave sisalara) cultivation. J. Ind. Soc. Soil Sci.42(1): 111-114.
Singh, K., Kuhad, M.S. and Dhankar, S.S. 1989. In-fluence of soil characteristics on profile distri-bution of DTPA-extractable micronutrient cat-ions. Ind. J. Agril. Sci. 59: 331-334.
Smith, J.L and Doran, J.W. 1996. Measurement anduse of pH and electrical conductivity for soilquality analysis. In: Doran, J.W. and Jones, A.J.(Eds.), Methods for Assessing Soil Quality, SoilSci. Soc. Am. Special Publication 49. SSSA,Madison, WI.
Tripathi, D., Singh, K. and Upadhyay, G.P. 1994. Dis-tribution of micronutrients in some representa-tive soil profiles of Himachal Pradesh. J. Ind.Soc. Soil Sci. 42(1): 143-145.
Walkley, A. and Black, T.A. 1934. An examination ofthe Degt. Jarett method for determination of soilorganic matter and a proposed modification ofcromic acid titration. Soil Sci. 37: 29-38.
Received: 4 April 2012; Accepted: 25 June 2012
