Mebrate Abiyot, Kippie Tadesse, Zeray Nigussie, Haile Getahun
Department of Natural Resource Management, Dilla University, Ethiopia.
Departments of Agricultural Economics, Dilla University, Ethiopia.
Heliyon. 2022 Dec 1;8(12):e12011. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12011. eCollection 2022 Dec.
Soil fertility is the ability of the soil to provide favorable chemical, physical and biological characteristics to sustain plant growth. Its physicochemical properties are greatly influenced by altitude and farmer wealth status. This study aimed to examine the differences in selected soil physicochemical properties under three agroecological zone based on altitude gradient (upper, middle, and lower) and wealth class (rich, medium, and poor) in the organic agriculture dominant area of the Gedeo zone, southern Ethiopia. Soil samples were collected from the field under organic agriculture. A total of 216 composite soil samples 3(altitude) 12 (wealth class) 3(replication) and 2 soil depth (0-30 and 30-60 cm) were collected and analyzed for some selected soil physical and chemical properties using standard soil analytical procedures. Data were subjected to a two-way analysis of variance to determine the effects of agroecological zones and wealth status of households on the soil properties. The result showed that soil physical properties such as sand (p < 0.01), clay (p < 0.05) and bulk density (BD) (p < 0.01) were significantly affected by altitudinal gradients. Soil organic carbon (SOC), cation exchange capacity (CEC), total nitrogen (TN) and phosphorus (P) were in the suitable range for agricultural soil, suggesting that the organic agricultural practices employed in the study area might be contributed to improved soil fertility. Soil pH (HO, (p < 0.01), CEC (p < 0.05), SOC % (p < 0.001), TN % (p < 0.05), P(p < 0.001) and K (p < 0.05) were significantly varied due to difference in agroecological zone. Similarly, wealth class of farmer had significant influence on soil pH (HO) (p < 0.001), SOC (p < 0.001) and P (p < 0.001). The results highlight the importance of the agroecological zone and wealth status of farmer households on soil fertility improvements in the study area. Hence, during the implementation of the soil fertility policy, considering the altitude and wealth status of the farmer is recommended to improve soil fertility.
土壤肥力是指土壤提供有利于植物生长的化学、物理和生物学特性的能力。其物理化学性质受海拔高度和农民财富状况的显著影响。本研究旨在考察埃塞俄比亚南部格德奥地区有机农业主导区，基于海拔梯度（高、中、低）和财富等级（富、中、贫）划分的三个农业生态区中，选定的土壤物理化学性质的差异。土壤样本采自有机农业耕地。总共采集了216个混合土壤样本（3个海拔×12个财富等级×3次重复）以及2个土壤深度（0 - 30厘米和30 - 60厘米）的样本，并使用标准土壤分析程序对一些选定的土壤物理和化学性质进行了分析。对数据进行双向方差分析，以确定农业生态区和家庭财富状况对土壤性质的影响。结果表明，土壤物理性质如砂粒含量（p < 0.01）、黏粒含量（p < 0.05）和容重（BD）（p < 0.01）受海拔梯度显著影响。土壤有机碳（SOC）、阳离子交换量（CEC）、全氮（TN）和磷（P）处于农业土壤的适宜范围内，这表明研究区域采用的有机农业实践可能有助于提高土壤肥力。土壤pH值（HO，（p < 0.01）、CEC（p < 0.05）、SOC%（p < 0.001）、TN%（p < 0.05）、P（p < 0.001）和K（p < 0.05）因农业生态区的差异而有显著变化。同样，农民的财富等级对土壤pH值（HO）（p < 0.001）、SOC（p < 0.001）和P（p < 0.001）有显著影响。研究结果突出了农业生态区和农户财富状况对研究区域土壤肥力提升的重要性。因此，在实施土壤肥力政策时，建议考虑农民的海拔高度和财富状况以提高土壤肥力。
