Fertility Status of Soils of the two major cocoa producing Local Government Areas (Etung and Ikom) in Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

Fertility studies were carried out on the status of Basalt soil of Etung and Ikom Local Gov- ernment Areas of Cross River State for Cocoa production. Stratified – random sampling technique was used in taking soil samples at 0-25cm and 25-50cm depth at different loca- tions in Etung and Ikom Local Government Areas of Cross River State. Analytical results indicated that the soils in these areas are clay loam. The sand content of the soil ranged from 34.20 % to 84 %. Etung Local Government Area had the highest mean sand fraction of 50.54% compared to Ikom having 49.71%. Sand content of the soil generally decreased with increased in soil depth while the silt and clay content ranged from 9.80 % to 16.00 % and 8.00 % to 48.00 % respectively. The silt and clay content of the soils were higher in the surface soil than the subsurface soil in both Local Government Areas having a textural class of sandy loam in the surface soil and clay in the subsurface soil. The soil organic matter content of the surface soils in both Local Government Areas was generally higher than those of the subsurface soils with a mean value of 2.56 % and 3.07 % in the surface soil and 2.90 % and 2.94 % in the subsurface soil respectively. The soil pH decreased with depth; at 0-25 cm it ranged from 5.46 and decreased to 5.29 at 25-50 cm. The effective cation exchange capacity ranged from 5.09 cmol/kg to 10.6 cmol/kg with a mean value of 7.00 cmol/kg and 7.86 cmol/kg for surface and subsurface soils respectively. The ex- changeable bases (Ca Mg, k, and Na) and ECEC of these soils were below the critical value required for cocoa production.