engleski

Tillage, manure and gypsum use in reclamation of saline-sodic soils

Soil degradation resulting from soil salinity and sodicityis a major problem under arid and semiarid climates. Nearly 831 million hectares of land are salt-affected worldwide. The high salt concentration negatively affects soil physical and chemical properties as well as soil microbial activity, thus causing a decline in soil productivity. It has led to the depletion of soil organic carbon, decline in biomass production, contamination of water resources, and emission of greenhouse gases such as CO2 at an accelerated rate. The initial hydration of sodic clays leads to slaking and swelling while continuous hydration results in dispersion of clay particles. Saline and sodic soils usually suffer from poor physical properties, including high bulk density, low macroporosity and aggregate stability. Therefore, management of such soils is challenging. The fundamental issue of soil quality improvement may in a long-term have a aim to restore an earlier state for the required crop production purposes or to limit and/or slowing down the further deterioration, in order to reservations the original values and features of the soil properties. Appropriate tillage is key factor for mitigation of negative effect, while application of organic matter through various sources is another amelioration strategy for salt-affected soils. These procedures affect soil physical, chemical and biological properties. Tillage improves aeration and alleviates compaction while organic matter promotes binding soil particles into aggregates. Present paper present positive aspect of tillage and amendment addition (gypsum, farmyard manure, sulfur) on properties of saline- sodic soils using available literature.

management ; aggregates ; amelioration ; gypsum ; manure

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