Mineralogical composition and C/N contents in soil and water among betel vineyards of coastal Odisha, India

Abstract

The Piper betle L. leaves and their significance were described in various ayurvedic studies of India and China for its diverse use in cultural practices and treatment of various health disorders. The leaves of P. betle were used as post-meal mouth freshener in India for centuries. However, it offers economic benefits to farmers of Coastal India at large. Betel leaves cultivated agricultural soils play a significant role for their mineralogical composition. So, this present study aimed to find out the soil physicochemical characteristics and C/N contents of Betel vineyards of coastal Odisha. The soil and water samples were collected from local varieties of P. betle L. cultivated vineyards of Balasore, Ganjam, and Puri districts of Odisha and investigated their mineralogical composition. The soil mineralogy plays crucial role to understand the soil–plant relations. Coastal soil samples also contain the most prized mineral aggregations from economical perspectives. The mineralogical composition involves chemical composition, essential elemental composition, and surface morphology. The mineralogical and elemental composition of soil samples were carried out by using various techniques like Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence, scanning electron microscopy attached with energy-dispersive X-ray system. CHNS analyzer for quantification of hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon, and sulfur content. H2O2 (30%)-treated soil is employed to eliminate the organic carbon from mass soil samples. The scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed the presence of heterogeneity shape and size of surface soils of both treated and untreated soils. For estimation of total organic carbon (TOC), inorganic carbon, total nitrogen, and total carbon, water samples were analyzed through TOC analyzer. Percentage variation arises in GAN and PUR sites soil due to more assumption of organic matter from clay soils in comparison with sandy soils of BAL. The spectra of FTIR point out Kaolinite and Quartz as the key components and others are minor components. The common minerals like quartz, hematite, kaolinite, montmorillonite, calcite, organic matter and illite in diverse compositions are recognized. Further, the presence of these above minerals was confirmed by the XRD analysis. Morphological analysis of kaolinite indicated euhedral, hexagonal, and pseudo-hexagonal-shaped plates. The mineralogical data revealed the relative abundance of phosphorus and nitrogen was less in all soils. Depletion of P and N may be resulted due to introduction of fresh plowed soil from grazed pastoral land. The present research uncovers that soils requires adequate input of additional compost, manures, and fertilizers for maximal vegetative growth and economic yield as well. As P. betle species is very precious medicinal plant, and this research suggested not to use contaminated water for betel cultivation. Our results also helpful for the improvement in soil management in the vineyards to determining the mineral nutrients that affect plant growth and development.