Improvement of saline soils through indigenous materials

Abstract

Abstract Reclamation of saline soils involves heavy leaching with water, with or without the addition of gypsum, depending upon the calcium content of the soil. Many a time, flushing the soil becomes difficult because of its low permeability due to high clay content, as obtained in most of the coastal saline soils of India. There is also the danger of hydrolysis under conditions of prolonged leaching, which may result in raising the pH, dispersion of the soil, impeded drainage, root penetration and aeration. Reclamation of such soils, therefore, calls for the improvement of physical conditions for better permeability and addition of calcium rich substances. Indigenous materials like basic slag, lime sludge, calcareous soil and iron rich mineral soil, in addition to gypsum, may serve as useful amendments for improving the soil's physical conditions. It was, therefore, thought worth-while to study the effect of addition of these materials on the improvement of saline soils.