Land suitability evaluation of Ogochie river wetland soils in Ngor-Okpala local government area of Imo state Southeastern Nigeria for rain fed rice production
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31073/Keywords:
wetlands, soil, rice, land suitability evaluation, southeastern NigeriaAbstract
In a bid to contribute to food sufficiency and sustainability of rice production in Nigeria, we carried out the study on the land suitability evaluation of Ogochie river wetland soils in NgorOkpala Local Government Area of Imo State, South-eastern Nigeria. Three topounits were identified as footslope, midslope and summit and were connected by a transect using Global Positioning System (GPS). A profile pit was dug on each topounit. Both soil description and land suitability evaluation were carried out according to FAO guidelines. Soil samples were collected from each horizon, air dried and sieved for standard routine analysis. The soils were shallow in depth and imperfectly to poorly drained. Sand dominated the texture of the soils which was classified as sandy loam. Bulk density and porosity ranged between 0.82-1.68g/cm3 and 36.6-69.2% respectively. All soils recorded acidic soil reaction (5.28-5.37). The fertility levels of all soils were low having organic matter (0.4-1.68 %), total exchangeable bases (2.68-3.18 cmol/kg), effective cation exchange capacity (3.38-4.11 cmol/kg) and available phosphorus (1.03-2.04 ppm). However, total exchangeable acidity was high (0.7-0.8 cmol/kg) depicting acidity of soils studied. Percentage base saturation was high (76.6-80.1%) but not sufficient for optimum rice production. The soils were non saline with electrical conductivity values less than 1dsm-1.The soils of the study area were evaluated as being marginally suitable (S3) for rain fed rice production, with footslope having limitations in fertility, soil texture and depth. Midslope had limitations in fertility and soil texture while summit had limitations in fertility, soil texture and topography.
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