Response of Conservation Measures on the Growth of Planted Species and Improvement in Soil Properties in a Degraded Area

摘要

None of the natural resource is so valuable as land. This forms the base of all human activities, hence has been subjected to maximum exploitation, be it for production, construction or otherwise. Singh et al. (1992) made an attempt to select suitable tree species for skeletal soil of Sambalpur (Orissa, India) by carrying out plantation with some selected species and assessing their relative performance. Moisture and thermal stress in eroded skeletal soil affect the availability and absorption of water and nutrients by plants and consequently the establishment and growth of plants. Gupta and Aggarwal (1988) have also expressed similar view with regard to sandy wastelands of Rajasthan. Mulching has been found to be very effective in lowering soil temperature in root zone (Prihar et al. 1979) as well as conserving soil moisture and checking evaporation. Mulching also promotes growth of tree species in degraded soils (Singh and Saggar, 1997). In areas where slope is higher and run off and erosion is severe contour trenching becomes essential to arrest water and allow it to percolate in the soil for its availability to plants. Further, deficiency of phosphorus in the soils of Jabalpur is a common phenomenon. VAM fungi are known to enhance nutrient uptake, especially P from the soil (Harley and Smith, 1983). Verma and Jamaluddin (1994) have pointed out that AM fungi also enhance tolerance to drought in tree species. The present study was therefore, aimed to assess the effect of soil conservation measure (staggered trenching) in association with VAM application on growth of tree species in severely eroded land and improvement of soil properties.