Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen dynamics in paddy soils on the Java Island, Indonesia

Abstract

Soil organic carbon is one of the soil quality parameters. Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen play an important role in soil physicochemical fertility. The purpose of this paper was to observe the dynamics of organic matter and nitrogen content in paddy soil in Java. Data is obtained from the collection of various research results since 1990, then to analyze the correlation between the chemical properties of the soil. Out of 860 data in five provinces in Java showed a strong correlation between soil organic carbon content and total nitrogen. More than 77% of the paddy soil in Java have low soil organic carbon content as well as more than 80% have a low total nitrogen content. The positive correlation between soil organic carbon content and total nitrogen is quite strong. Correlation coefficients were 0.842 in Banten, 0.900 in West Java 0.895 in Central Java, 0.798 in East Java and 0.898 in Yogyakarta. From this linear regression can be seen that the higher the soil organic carbon content, the ability of the soil to retain nitrogen will also be higher. We can manage soil fertility, especially the nitrogen availability in the soil by maintaining the soil organic matter content.