Abstract
Mapping of soil properties is an important operation as it plays an important role in the knowledge about soil properties and how it can be used sustainably. The study was carried out in a local government area in Bangladesh in order to map out some soil properties and assess their variability within the area. From the study area, a total of 92 soil samples (0–20 cm) were collected from different cropping patterns at an interval of 2.2 × 2.2 km2 on a regular grid design. A portable global positioning system (GPS) was used to collect coordinates of each sampling site. Then, soil properties, that is, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (Total N), and soil available nutrients (P, K, and S) were measured in the laboratory. After the normalization of data, classical statistics were used to describe the soil properties, and geostatistical analysis was used to illustrate the spatial variability of the soil properties by using kriging interpolation techniques in a GIS environment. Results show that the spatial distribution and spatial dependency level of soil properties can be different even within the small or large scale. According to cross-validation results, for most soil properties, the kriging interpolation method provided the least interpolation error. The generated maps of soil properties that indicate soil nutrient status over the study region could be helpful for farmers and decision-makers to enhance site-specific nutrient management. Also, these prototype maps would be helpful for future nutrient and fertilizer applications management, including a site-specific condition to not only reduce the cost of input management but also prevent any environmental hazard. It also demonstrates that the effectiveness of geostatistics and GIS techniques provided a powerful tool for this study in terms of regionalized nutrient management.
Highlights
Bangladesh, one of the most densely settled countries in the world whose economy, is largely based on agriculture which contributes 13.31% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current prices [1]. e land is the principal resource which employs around 40% of the total labor force and feeds about 164.6 million of its population [2, 3]. e total cultivable land is estimated to be 9.10 million hectares with an average cropping intensity of 179 percent per year
The lower variability (CV ≤ 15%) was observed for soil pH, while moderate variability (CV = 15–34%) was found for total nitrogen and available sulfur according to the guidelines provided by Warrick [54] for the variability of soil properties
For geostatistical analysis of soil variables, the value of nugget: sill ratio ranges from 0% (Av K) to 64.10% (Total N), which indicates that internal factors were dominant over external factors
Summary
Bangladesh, one of the most densely settled countries in the world whose economy, is largely based on agriculture which contributes 13.31% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current prices [1]. e land is the principal resource which employs around 40% of the total labor force and feeds about 164.6 million of its population [2, 3]. e total cultivable land is estimated to be 9.10 million hectares with an average cropping intensity of 179 percent per year. E total cultivable land is estimated to be 9.10 million hectares with an average cropping intensity of 179 percent per year. According to the agricultural statistics database of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [5], total cropland extent at the global scale, computed as the sum of arable land and permanent crop area, is about 15.3 million km. Applied and Environmental Soil Science for all cropland used at least once in five years but neglect areas with long fallow periods. E total harvested crop area reported in the same database is 11.8 million km yr−1, indicating a global average cropping intensity of 0.77 crop harvests per year. Erefore, to undertake soil planning for use and management purposes, it is important to evaluate how the chemical and physical properties of the soil are distributed in a determined area Land use without adequate planning leads to soil impoverishment and low crop yield, which results in a decline in the socioeconomic and technological level of the rural population [11, 12]. erefore, to undertake soil planning for use and management purposes, it is important to evaluate how the chemical and physical properties of the soil are distributed in a determined area
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