EFFECT OF DIFFERENT SOIL CONSERVATION APPLICATIONS ON THE PHYSICOCHEMICAL OF SOIL PROPERTIES

Water erosion is an important global problem that threatens natural resources such as soils and waters. In order to prevent this, various soil conservation studies are carried out worldwide. In this context, the performances of soil conservation practices that were applied to control erosion in a catchment in which severe erosion occurs were compared with respect to certain soil properties. In the study, the applications including Gradoni Terracing Application (GTA), Plant Cover Application (PCA), Wire Fence Application (WFA) and control erosion field (non-practice plot-NP) were compared. Soil samples were collected from the runoff plots established by the Ministry of Forestry. The aggregate size class (ASC), aggregate stability (AS), bulk density (BD), soil penetration resistance (SPR), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), lime (CaCO3), organic matter (OM), total nitrogen (N), available phosphorus (P) and available potassium (K) of the soil samples were determined. The statistical analyses showed that the GTA had the highest AS value (60.89%; p<0.05). The soils from the PCA had the highest OM (1.91%), total N (0.32%) and available K (259.3 mg.kg-1) contents compared to those in other applications. The results of the study showed that the three erosion prevention practices yielded positive results in terms of soil management and plant nutrient loss compared to the non-practice application.