Assessment of Soil Properties Using Geospatial Techniques at DDUCE-OF Farm

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the geographic variability and mapping of different soil properties using geospatial techniques at DDUCE-OF Farm. For this purpose, surface soil samples (0-15 cm depth) were collected with the help of GPS at definite locations of research farm area at DDUCE-OF, CCSHAU, Hisar during rabi, 2021. These samples were analyzed in the laboratory for various physico-chemical and biological properties. Soil properties of DDUCE-OF farm revealed that soils are sandy loam to loam in texture having pH ranged from 7.15 to 8.65 and electrical conductivity (EC) ranged from 0.30 to 2.75 dS/m. The soil organic carbon (SOC) content was observed medium to high (0.41 to 0.94%).The available N was low (126 to 196 kg/ha), P ranged from 8.50 to 23.5 kg/ha (from low to high in content) and available K was found medium to high and ranged from 128.5 to 554.0 kg/ha. The available S ranged between 60 to 725 mg/kg and was observed sufficient. The soil microbiological bacterial count status ranged between 4.6x103-9.8x109 CFU count per g of soil in various blocks of organic farm. The DTPA-extractable micronutrients Zn (1.00-4.47 mg/kg), Fe (7.26-19.92 mg/kg), Mn (3.88-17.77 mg/kg) and Cu (0.93-4.64 mg/kg) were sufficient in amount and heavy metal contents (Ni, Pb, Cd, Cr, As) were found below their permissible limit. The study concluded that the soil mapping and survey is significant because it aids in the evaluation of soil qualities and their application in organic farming.