Abstract
<p>Soil fertility evaluation has been considered as a most effective tool for sustainable planning of a particular region. This study was conducted to determine the soil fertility status of the Agricultural Research Station, Pakhribas, Dhankuta, Nepal. The total 60 soil samples were collected randomly at a depth of 0-20 cm by using the soil sampling auger. For identification of soil sampling points A GPS device was used. The collected samples were analyzed for their texture, pH, OM, N, P<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>, K<sub>2</sub>O, Ca, Mg, S, B, Fe, Zn, Cu and Mn status following standard methods in the laboratory of Soil Science Division, Khumaltar. The Arc-GIS 10.1 software was used for soil fertility maps preparation. The observed data revealed that soil was dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) in colour, and single grained, granular and sub-angular blocky in structure. The sand, silt and clay content were 56.61±0.97%, 27.62±0.56% and 15.77±0.58%, respectively and categorized as loam, sandy loam and sandy clay loam in texture. The soil was very acidic in pH (4.66±0.07) and very low in available sulphur (0.53±0.11mg/kg), available boron (0.24±0.07mg/kg). The organic matter (1.34±0.07%), total nitrogen (0.09±0.003mg/kg), available calcium (605.70±31.40mg/kg), available magnesium (55.96±4.67mg/kg) and available zinc (0.54±0.22mg/kg) were low in status. Similarly, available potassium (115.98±9.19 mg/kg) and available copper (1.13±0.09 mg/kg) were medium in status. Furthermore, available manganese (36.31±2.82mg/kg) was high, whereas available phosphorus (105.07±9.89 mg/kg) and available iron (55.80±8.89 mg/kg) were very high in status. The soil fertility management practice should be adopted based on the determined status in the field for the sustainable production of crops. The future research strategy should be built based on the soil fertility status of the research farm.</p>
Highlights
Soil is the most vital and precious natural resource that sustains life on the Earth
The research station is located at latitude 27.046033°N and longitude 87.292939°E as well as altitude 1,730 m above sea level
The soil fertility status of the study area was assessed with respect to texture, colour, structure, pH, organic matter, primary nutrients, secondary nutrients and micronutrients such as B, Fe, Zn, Cu, and Mn, and the results obtained are presented and discussed in the following headings
Summary
Soil is the most vital and precious natural resource that sustains life on the Earth. Its proportion can be changed under the influence of regular natural and human induced factors. It should be maintained where it is high, improved where it is low and developed where it is lacking. The soil fertility is inadequate for the crop production in the different research sites of Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) (Khadka et al 2016a, 2016b, 2016c, 2016d, 2017). This may show poor performance in the research activity for the respective sites
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