Soil Management and Slope Impacts on Soil Properties, Hydrological Response, and Erosion in Hazelnut Orchard

Leon Josip Telak,Igor Bogunovic,Ivan Dugan

doi:10.3390/soilsystems5010005

Abstract

Proper soil management is crucial to mitigate soil degradation. Hazelnut orchards are often raised on slopes and intensively managed, which makes them similar to the already defined highly erodible land uses like vineyards. This research aims to assess the impacts of soil management and the slope on the soil properties, hydrological response, and erosion in the hazelnut orchard. At eastern Croatia on Cambisols, four treatments were chosen, representing two soil managements in the study area (herbicide and mulched) on two different slope inclinations (high ~9° and low ~4.5°), for rainfall simulation experiments and soil sampling. The herbicide treatments on both slopes removed soil cover and reduced (p < 0.05) soil organic matter, mean weight diameter, and water-stable aggregates. Mulched treatments recorded a lower (p < 0.05) bulk density. These soil properties affected soil hydrological response, as the reduction of infiltration in herbicide plots lead to higher water and sediment losses. The higher slope increased erosion in herbicide soil to over 2.2 t ha−1. Mulching was shown as a superior practice as it enhances soil properties and reduces soil erosion, even reducing the effect of the higher slope on erosional processes.

Highlights

The degradation processes of soils are a major concern in the world today [1], because of which soils are one of the focuses of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals [2]
Herbicide application was related to high soil erosion rates [9] as removal of vegetation cover and reduction of aggregate stability leads to increased Run, SC, and SL [12]
Impacts of both soil management and slope were noted in WSA (Figure 3E), as mulched and higher sloped treatments resulted in significantly higher values of water holding capacity (WHC)

Summary

Introduction

The degradation processes of soils are a major concern in the world today [1], because of which soils are one of the focuses of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals [2]. How soil management impacts soil properties is well documented, as well as the impact on soil erosion [2], where tillage, removal of the soil cover, and herbicide applications are recognized as the major factors for high soil erosion [5], while grasscovering and mulching show the opposite effect [6]. Soil structural properties, such as mean weight diameter (MWD) and water-stable aggregates (WSA), are positively correlated with infiltration (IR) [8] and soil organic matter (SOM [9], and negatively with the sediment concentration (SC) and sediment loss (SL) [10,11]. Herbicide application was related to high soil erosion rates [9] as removal of vegetation cover and reduction of aggregate stability leads to increased Run, SC, and SL [12]. Grass-covering and mulching practices increase SOM, preserve soil structure, and reduce SC and SL [13]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion