Soil Fertility Assessment of The Lugu Main Canal Of Wurno Irrigation Project, Sokoto State, Nigeria, Five Years After Rehabilitation.

Abstract

ABSTRACT:A study was conducted during the 2000/2001 irrigation season to assess the soil fertility and the pattern of its variation with depth in the Lugu main canal of Wurno Irrigation Project. Soil samples were collected from four randomly chosen transects across the field at two sampling spots in each transect. The samples were taken at 0 -15, 15 -30 and 30 -45 cm depths from each spot. Soil chemical properties such as pH, total N, available P, CEC and exchangeable bases were determined. The soils had average pH of 7.09, 6.92 and 6.87 at the 0-15, 15-30 and 30-45 cm depths, respectively. The CEC, available P, and total N were very low at all depths. CEC and total N decreased with depth. Ca and K were also very low while Mg was moderate at all depths. Na on the other hand, was high at the surface and moderate at lower depths. The % base saturation was high at all depths. The soils were low in fertility and need the adoption of proper management in terms of organic and inorganic fertilizer application and quality irrigation practices to resuscitate and sustain the soil fertility.

Effect of cashew (Anacardium occidentale) biochar on soil chemical properties and agronomy of soybean (Glycine max L. merril)

“…The results also showed that soil properties decreased from the surface to the subsurface soil layer (Table 1). This is in line with the findings of Adam et al (2019), Hayatu et al (2019), Popoola and Mgbonu (2018), Yakub andMallo (2018), andDikko et al (2010) who reported that soil pH, cation exchange capacity, organic carbon, organic matter, total nitrogen and available phosphorus decreased with soil depth (from surface to subsurface soil layers). Olubanjo and Inaidoh (2017) also reported that slope position and soil depth significantly influenced soil chemical properties such as pH, N, Ca, Mg, K, H and ECEC.…”

“…The results further showed that the available phosphorus, magnesium, exchangeable acidity and cation exchange capacity increased with soil depth. This however contradicts the findings of Adam et al (2019), Hayatu et al (2019), Popoola and Mgbonu, (2018), Yakub andMallo, (2018), andDikko et al (2010) who reported that soil pH, cation exchange capacity, organic carbon, organic matter, total nitrogen and available phosphorus decreased with soil depth (from surface to subsurface soil layers).…”

“…The decreased values in some soil properties down the soil depth of the experimental site could be attributed to sandy nature of the soil, poor land/soil management practices, continuous/over cultivation, mono-cropping, bush burning, high temperature, erosion and leaching as a result of sloppy topography of the experimental site. Adam et al (2019) and Dikko et al (2010) attributed this to sparse vegetation, bush burning, removal of crop residues, nutrient uptake by plants and volatilization of some nutrient due to high temperature at the surface soil.…”

Soil Fertility Assessment of Semiarid Soils from Nigeria Cropped to Sorghum

“…The methods include Bray1 [1], Mehlich3 [2], acid ammonium oxalate [3], and ammonium acetate. In Nigeria, research on assessment of soil fertility is mainly carried out using Bray1 [4,5,6]. Additionally, the excessive cost of reagents and analytical equipment limits the choice and frequency of collecting soil samples for soil fertility monitoring in Nigerian soils.…”

“…The Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) technique is generally used to measure the extracted nutrients by the M3 method. For most soil research conducted in Nigeria, however, assessment of soil fertility is done using Bray1 [6,8,10], without consideration to the suitability of the method (soil pH) for accessing the extractable plant nutrients. Also, the researchers generally restrict the application of the method to assessing available P while neglecting other nutrients extracted by the method, thereby leading to wastage of valuable information that would otherwise be available to make scientific soil fertility decisions.…”