Abstract
Land use change alters biodiversity and soil quality and thus affects ecosystem functions. This study investigated the effects of changes in land use on major soil quality indicators. Soil samples were taken from a depth of 0–10 cm (top soil) under four major land uses (cropland, grassland, area exclosure, eucalyptus plantation) with similar land use change histories for analysis, and soil from a nearby natural forest was used as a reference. Land use change from natural forest to cropland and grassland significantly decreased major soil quality indicators such as soil organic C (SOC), total soil N (TSN), molybdate-reactive bicarbonate-extractable P, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) spore density, but compared to the cropland, change to area exclosure and eucalyptus plantation significantly improved SOC, TSN and soil aggregate stability (SAS). In addition, we assessed the correlation among indicators and found that SOC, TSN and SAS significantly correlate with many other soil quality indicators. The study highlights that the conversion of natural forest to cropland results in decline of soil quality and aggregate stability. However, compared to cropland, application of area exclosure and afforestation on degraded lands restores soil quality and aggregate stability.
Highlights
Understanding land use history is essential to comprehend the magnitude and trend of changes in soil quality[10], and the highlands of northern Ethiopia, where most of the natural forests have been converted to other land use types, provide an interesting context to investigate these aspects
Our study shows that cropland had a significant lower organic matter and aggregate stability and thereby lowers potential soil enzyme activities than natural forest, except β-glucosidase where no statistical differences were observed
soil aggregate stability (SAS) and soil organic matter are the two parameters that first should be taken into consideration when monitoring the degradation and restoration of the soil ecosystem in response to land use change
Summary
Understanding land use history is essential to comprehend the magnitude and trend of changes in soil quality[10], and the highlands of northern Ethiopia, where most of the natural forests have been converted to other land use types, provide an interesting context to investigate these aspects. Eucalyptus plantation is a major land use that was established by the Ethiopian government to address the growing demand for wood products[13], and the expansion of this land use has significantly contributed to an increase in total forest plantation cover from an estimated 190,000 ha in 1990 to approximately 972,000 ha in 201014. Despite their economic importance, there are ecological controversies surrounding eucalyptus plantations including their effect on soil quality[15]. It is considered as a promising indicator of the restoration status in eroded ecosystems, where the land use change is associated with change in plant community composition[26]
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