Knowledge of soil properties such as texture, bulk density, organic matter, soil reaction, soil electrical conductivity, and soil erodibility factor is fundamental to the sustainable management of soil resources. This study aimed to determine the changes in certain soil properties including texture, bulk density, organic matter, pH, electrical conductivity, and soil erodibility factor with different land uses, elevation zones and soil depths in the Arhavi Sub-basin, Artvin, Turkiye. For these purposes, a total of 618 soil samples (309 disturbed and 309 undisturbed) were taken from 155 sampling points located in areas with different land uses, including tea (33 sampling points), hazelnut (33 sampling points), forest (67 sampling points), and grassland (22 sampling points). The results of the statistical analysis revealed that the soils at depths of 0–15 cm and 15–30 cm showed significant differences according to the land use in terms of sand, clay, silt, bulk density, organic matter, and pH. There were significant positive correlations between elevation and soil bulk density (r = 0.495) at a soil depth of 0–15 cm in the tea areas. In the grassland areas, there were significant positive correlations between elevation and silt, bulk density, and the soil erodibility factor (r = 0.485, r = 0.794, and r = 0.442, respectively) at depths of 0–15 cm, and significant positive correlations between elevation and both silt and bulk density (r = 0.468 and r = 0.691, respectively) at depths of 15–30 cm. Similarly, there were significant positive correlations between elevation and both sand and organic matter at soil depths of 0–15 cm and 15–30 cm (sand: r = 0.351 and r = 0.638, respectively; organic matter: r = 0.277 and r = 0.587, respectively). On the other hand, significant negative correlations were found between elevation and silt, bulk density, pH, and the soil erodibility factor at depths of 0–15 cm and 15–30 cm (silt: r = −0.400 and r = −0.461, respectively; bulk density: r = −0.593 and r = −0.545, respectively; pH: r = −0.354 and r = −0.309, respectively; soil erodibility factor: r = −0.443 and r = −520, respectively). Soil acidity was found to be the most important problem threatening soil fertility in all land uses. The use of soil acidity-increasing fertilizers, such as ammonium sulfate, in tea gardens in the region should be eliminated to protect the fertility of soils in the future. The knowledge that this study provides might help farmers and foresters in the region in the proper management and fertilization of their lands. Moreover, this study will provide data to future studies related to soil acidification, soil erosion, and land use that are planned for the Arhavi Sub-basin.
Water erosion is an important erosion type that erodes and transports the most. With the effects of stream water, both streambank and gully erosions cause even more soil transport and debris accumulation resulting more flood events and associated loss of life and properties, as well as increasing the deposition of sediment in dam reservoirs that shorten the economic lifespan of these dams. This study was carried out in 14 different bank erosion sites (stream reach) in the Oltu Micro Catchment (OMC), one of the sub-watershed of the Coruh River Basin, to measure gully and streambank erosions over five-year long study period using "erosion pin method". Oltu Micro Catchment has arid and semi-arid climate and has a 37% slope degree with a rugged structure. Over the five-year study period, the annual gully and streambank erosion rates were ranged from 1.25 to 8.79 cm/yr and the five-year average was measured as 4.43 cm/yr. The five-year soil losses were ranged from 30.5 to 190.8 tons/km/yr, and the five-year average was measured as 83.9 tons/km/yr. Compared to 1 st and 2 nd order streams, most of these measured soil losses were due to gully erosion (78%). In addition, it was determined that very large increase in bank erosion was occurred due to increase in rainfall in this semi-arid region showing that these types of watersheds are sensitive to bank erosions. As a conclusion, streambank and gully erosions are dynamic processes effected by the spatial and temporal scale differences under varying climate settings. Additionally, this study is a pioneer one in the region that identifies a need for the conservation practices (particularly for the gullies) to reduce the soil losses and deposited sediment in the whole channel system and eventually in dam reservoirs.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.