Changes in selected soil properties across a chronosequence of exclosures in the central dry lowlands of Ethiopia

Fikrey TESFAY; Kibebew KİBRET; Aster GEBREKİRSTOS; Kiros Meles HADİGU

doi:https://doi.org/10.18393/ejss.707667

Article Details

Changes in selected soil properties across a chronosequence of exclosures in the central dry lowlands of Ethiopia

Authors:

Fikrey TESFAY | Kibebew KİBRET | Aster GEBREKİRSTOS | Kiros Meles HADİGU

Publisher:

Avrasya Toprak Bilimleri Dernekleri Federasyonu

Journal:

Eurasian Journal of Soil Science 2020 Vol.9 Issue 2, pp.173-185

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

3/2020

Document Language:

English

Document ID (Org No.):

2000423402

eISSN:

2147-4249

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18393/ejss.707667

Abstract:

 

In Ethiopia, rehabilitation of the natural resource-base in degraded lands through area exclosures has become a necessary intervention, albeit empirical studies on the impact of these exclosures are limited. This study was conducted to investigate changes in selected soil properties along exclosures’ age and slope positions in Kewet district, central dry lowlands of Ethiopia. Soil samples were collected from three slope positions of three purposively selected exclosures of 5, 15 and 20 years old and one adjacent open grazing land from 0-10 cm soil depth for analysis of pertinent soil properties. The effect of exclosure age on bulk density, contents of sand, clay, organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, CEC, and exchangeable Mg+ and K+ was significant (P<0.05). All exclosures had low bulk density (1.14-1.16 g cm-3) as compared to the grazing land. Higher available water content (173 mm m-1) was recorded in the old exclosure. Soil organic carbon ranged from 2.58% (young exclosure) to 3.37% (middle age exclosure). Soil total nitrogen increased from 0.24-0.34%, while available phosphorus increased from 27-34%, from young to the old exclosure respectively. However, the influence of exclosures’ age on other soil properties was not significant. The young exclosure had the highest CEC (57 cmolc kg-1), whereas the grazing land had the highest total nitrogen and exchangeable Ca2+. From this result, it can be concluded that area exclosures, if managed properly, can improve some of the dynamic soil properties of open degraded grazing lands in the dry lowlands of Ethiopia.

Article Details

Changes in selected soil properties across a chronosequence of exclosures in the central dry lowlands of Ethiopia

Authors: Fikrey TESFAY | Kibebew KİBRET | Aster GEBREKİRSTOS | Kiros Meles HADİGU

Publisher: Avrasya Toprak Bilimleri Dernekleri Federasyonu

Journal: Eurasian Journal of Soil Science 2020 Vol.9 Issue 2, pp.173-185

Document Type: Article

Publication Date: 3/2020

Document Language: English

Document ID (Org No.): 2000423402

eISSN: 2147-4249

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18393/ejss.707667

Issues

Authors:

Fikrey TESFAY | Kibebew KİBRET | Aster GEBREKİRSTOS | Kiros Meles HADİGU

Publisher:

Avrasya Toprak Bilimleri Dernekleri Federasyonu

Journal:

Eurasian Journal of Soil Science 2020 Vol.9 Issue 2, pp.173-185

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

3/2020

Document Language:

English

Document ID (Org No.):

2000423402

eISSN:

2147-4249

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18393/ejss.707667