Evaluation of soil and litter quality indices using analysis hierarchical process (AHP) in Hyrcanian beech forest stands, Northern Iran (Case study: Korkoroud forests in Noshahr)

Abstract

The present study aimed to assess four forest stands, Fagus orientalis Lipsky-Carpinus betulus L.-Acer velutinum Boiss. (FO-CB-AV), Fagus orientalis Lipsky-Carpinus betulus L. (FO-CB), Fagus orientalis Lipsky-Acer velutinum Boiss. (FO-AV), and Pure Fagus orientalis Lipsky (FO) on basis of some soil quality indices in Mazandaran Province, northern Iran. Five samples per stand were taken (0–30 cm), the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of soil were determined. Nine criteria were selected according to Principal Component Analysis as Minimum Data Set. According to the results, the highest value of litter Ca, density and biomass of earthworm, and C microbial biomass were found in FO-CB-AV. After applying the analytical hierarchy process, the calculated overall priority based on nine criteria showed that the FO-CB-AV stand had a higher ecological potential compared to the other stands. Therefore, the FO-CB-AV stand had more of appropriate conditions for improving soil quality in degraded forest regions compared to the other stands under current conditions.

Assessing soil properties in various agroforestry lands in Kuningan District, West Java, Indonesia using Visual Evaluation of Soil Structure (VESS)

“…In sustainable agroforestry systems, high carbon inputs at the soil surface by litterfall of various species can maintain soil biodiversity, and C-organic soil accumulation (De Stefano and Jacobson 2017; Bahuguna et al 2018;Bahnemiri et al 2019;Siaruddin et al 2021) and indirectly influence soil physical quality (Arévalo-Gardini et al 2015) as well as other associated ecosystem services (Bucheli dan Bokelmann 2017). More existing trees will increase the Corganic value as well (Bahnemiri et al 2019). The cation exchange capacity (CEC) on agroforestry lands had a value of 15.42-19.54 cmol (+) kg -1 .…”

“…Changes in canopy composition from pure to mixed stands, as well as other broadleaved species, appeared to increase the intensity of C and N cycling. As a result, it has the potential to alter the rate of soil acidification, nutrients, and biological activity in the topsoil (Bahuguna et al 2018;Bahnemiri et al 2019). Soil organic matter has an important role in improving soil properties.…”

“…There are two general agroforestry systems practiced, i.e., complex agroforestry which uses many species of trees and simple agroforestry, which only uses single tree species. A complex agroforestry system with a high number of tree species and individuals can improve soil's physical properties (Bahuguna et al 2018;Bahnemiri et al 2019). Complex agroforestry performs better in improving root density, soil organic carbon and soil macroporosity compared to simple agroforestry and monoculture (Saputra et al 2020).…”

Mapping of Soil Quality Index (SQI) for Paddy Fields Using Sentinel-2 Imagery, Laboratory Analysis, and Principal Component Analysis

“…Previous studies only referred to one of the soil's chemical, physical or biological properties to determine SQI (Supriyadi et al, 2019;Supriyadi et al, 2018). However, this study combines the three parameters to categorize the soil quality (Bahnemiri et al, 2019).…”