We studied the changes in some properties of ordinary chernozem in Kamennaya steppe under different management practices (virgin unmown steppe and 100-year-old cropland). Water-retention curves (WRC) were determined by a micropsychrometric method. Specific surface and the content of organic carbon were also measured. It was revealed that 40 years of tillage had induced a reliable shift of WRC to the lower water content, which seems to be explained by a decrease in the specific surface and carbon content of plowed chernozems. The effect of the second factor is stronger. The surface of solid phase of all studied soils can be represented as a fractal within matric pressure range from -7.0 to -0.2 MPa. Fractal dimension D is maximum for the nontilled plots, although no significant relationship between D and soil management was revealed.
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