Effect of landuse on selected soil properties in the Cameron Highlands, Peninsular Malaysia
1998
Enoma, A.O.S. | Cheah, U.B. | Ismail, B.S. | Lum, K.Y. | Malik Z.
Studies were conducted on forest and cultivated soils to determine the effects of agricultural landuse on soil properties. Soils for the study were collected from the Tanah Rata, Brinchang and the Ringlet in Cameron Highlands. Soil attributes determined included organic matter content, pH, CEC and textural characteristics. The results showed that the soils were largely sandy loam in texture. Organic matter contents varied from 0.28% in the Tanah rata soil under Brassica oleracea capitata (Cabbage) cultivation to 3.57% in the Ringlet soil put to a no-shelter cultivation of Lycopersicon esculentum (Tomato). Organic matter contents of the soils were relatively higher in the cropped soils than those under forest cover. This may be due to the large inputs of organic fertilizers which are usually fed to tractor-levelled farmlands soon after land preparation. Cultivated soils from the different soil types were generally higher in pH and CEC values from their forest counterparts as a result of the probable effects of intermittent liming and large application of organic fertilizers, respectively. Percentage clay was consistently higher in cultivated soils than those under forest cover which reflects a removal of the original surface soil through tractor-levelling and sheet erosion. While cultivation tended to lead to a decline in the amount of sand, its effect on the silt component was less noticeable.
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