Land Clearing and Use in the Humid Nigerian Tropics: II. Soil Chemical Properties
Ghuman, B. S. | Lal, R.
A 4-yr study was conducted to investigate the effects of land clearing and subsequent land use on chemical properties of an Ultisol at Okomu, southern Nigeria. After 1 yr of cropping, soil pH, available P, and exchangeable Ca, Mg and K in the topsoil (0–10 cm) were significantly higher in the windrow zones of the shear-blade-cleared plots than in the nonwindrow zones, manually cleared plots, or forested control. In manual clearing, the organic-C and total-N contents declined below that of the forested control with 3 yr of cropping. Soil pH after 4 yrs and exchangeable K after 2 and 4 yr of cropping were significantly higher in the pasture system than in the other systems. In a given system, pH, organic C, and available P decreased with cropping time. Total N decreased with cropping time in all systems but pasture where there was a little increase. The levels of exchangeable Ca⁺² and Mg⁺² also decreased with cropping duration in all systems except the alley cropping in which their concentrations increased. The K⁺ content decreased with time in all systems but the pasture in which its level remained unchanged owing to returning of the hay to the field after cutting.
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