Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-7cvxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-19T07:25:39.444Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Fine-scale analysis of soil quality for various land uses and landforms in central Honduras

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 October 2009

P.J. Ericksen  and
K. McSweeney
P.J. Ericksen*
Affiliation:
Interim Coordinator, Alternatives to Slash and Burn (ASB) Programme, International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF), P.O. Box 30677, Nairobi, Kenya;
K. McSweeney
Affiliation:
Professor, Department of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1525 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53703.
*
Corresponding author is P. Ericksen ([email protected]).
Get access

Abstract

A key element of sustainable land management is maintenance of soil quality. We designed this study to compare the impact of land use and landform on soil quality attributes that vary at the plot level, or fine scale, using a framework that can be applied in many settings. The research site for this case study was a small catchment in the hillsides of central Honduras where farmers manage a variety of land uses. Fourteen biological, physical, and chemical attributes that affect the ability of a soil to perform key functions related to supporting plant growth were measured and scored. Samples from 20 sites represented different combinations of landform and land use. Quantitative analysis revealed that land use had a greater influence on soil quality than did landform. Soil organic carbon, texture, A horizon thickness, pH, structure, and bulk density accounted for the greatest differences among landform and land use units. Using weighted and additive combinations of the scored attributes to approximate soil quality functions, irrigated agriculture was judged to be the least sustainable land use, and coffee groves and forest patches were the most sustainable. The final soil quality values were sensitive to the weights and attributes chosen for a given function, and additional testing and evaluation were recommended.

Keywords

soil attributessoil functionssustainable land managementbiophysical complexitybiological complexity
Type
Articles
Information
American Journal of Alternative Agriculture , Volume 14 , Issue 4 , December 1999 , pp. 146 - 157
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1999

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.Aguilar, R., Kelly, E.F., and Heil, R.D.. 1988. Effects of cultivation on soils in northern Great Plains rangeland. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. J. 52:1081–1085.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
2.Anderson, J.M. 1994. Functional attributes of biodiversity in land use systems. In Greenland, D.J. and Szabolcs, I. (eds.). Soil Resilience and Sustainable Land Use. CAB International, Wallingford, U.K. p. 267–290.Google Scholar
3.Anderson, J.M. and Ingram, J.S.I.. 1993. Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility: A Handbook of Methods. CAB International, Wallingford, U.K.Google Scholar
4.Ardón, M. 1996. Dinámica de manejo del espacio en la microcuenca de La Lima, Tatumbla, Francisco Morazán, Honduras. Unpublished mimeo. Tegucigalpa, Honduras.Google Scholar
5.Arshad, M.A., and Coen, G.M.. 1992. Characterization of soil quality: Physical and chemical criteria. Amer. J. Alternative Agric. 7:25–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6.Arshad, M.A., Lowery, B., and Grossman, B.. 1996. Physical tests for monitoring soil quality. In Doran, J.W. and Jones, A.J. (eds.). Methods for Assessing Soil Quality. SSSA Special Pub. 49. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 123–142.Google Scholar
7.Bergeron, G., Scherr, S., Pender, J., Mendoza, F., Barbier, B., Durón, G., Rodriguez, R., and Neidecker-Gonzales, O.. 1996. Environmental and socioeconomic change in La Lima, Central Honduras, 1975–1995. Part of final report for Policies for Sustainable Development in the Central American Hillsides. International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, DC.Google Scholar
8.Bray, R.H., and Kurtz, L.T.. 1945. Determination of total, organic, and available forms of phosphorus in soils. Soil Sci. 59:39–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
9.Bremmer, J.M., and Mulvaney, C.S.. 1982. Nitrogen—total. In Page, A.L., Miller, R.H., and Keeney, D.R. (eds.). Methods of Soil Analysis. Part 2, Chemical and Microbiological Properties. 2nd ed.American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI. p. 595–624.Google Scholar
10.Burrough, P. 1993. Soil variability: A late 20th-century view. Soils Fertil. 56:529–562.Google Scholar
11.Chambers, R. 1990. Farmer-first: A practical paradigm for the third agriculture. In Altieri, M.A. and Hecht, S.B. (eds.). Agroecology and Small Farm Development. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. p. 237–244.Google Scholar
12.Cramer, C. 1994. Test your soils' health: I. New Farm 16(1):17–21.Google Scholar
13.Curry, J.P., and Good, J.A.. 1992. Soil faunal degradation and restoration. Adv. Soil Sci. 17:171–215.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14.Doran, J.W., and Parkin, T.B.. 1996. Quantitative indicators of soil quality: A minimum data set. In Doran, J.W. and Jones, A.J. (eds.). Methods for Assessing Soil Quality. SSSA Special Pub. 49. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 25–38.Google Scholar
15.EAP-IFPRI-IDRC. 1996. Dinámica del uso de la tierra en laderas de la región central de Honduras: Evaluatión de los cambios en la microcuenca de La Lima. Proyecto de cartografía de recursos comunitarios e investigatión de políticas (Honduras) 93–0030. Escuela Agricola Panamericana-International Food Policy Research Institute—International Development Research Centre, Washington, DC, and Ottawa, Canada.Google Scholar
16.Ericksen, P.J. 1998. An evaluation of the sustainability of land management: A case study from Central Honduras. Ph.D. thesis. Department of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin, Madison.Google Scholar
17.Ericksen, P.J., McSweeney, K., and Madison, F.W.. 1998. Multiple-scale analysis of sustainable land management: A case study from Central Honduras. ASA-CSSA-SSSA Abstracts. American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI. p. 266.Google Scholar
18.Fragoso, C., Barois, I., González, C., Arteaga, C., and Patrón, J.C.. 1993. Relationship between earthworms and soil organic matter levels in natural and managed ecosystems in the Mexican tropics. In Mulongoy, K. and Merckx, R. (eds.). Soil Organic Matter Dynamics and Sustainability of Tropical Agriculture. Wiley, New York. p. 231–256.Google Scholar
19.Gerrard, A. J. 1990. Soil variations on hillslopes in humid temperate climates. Geomorphol. 3:225–244.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
20.Greenland, D.J. 1994. Soil science and sustainable land management. In Greenland, D J. and Szabolcs, I. (eds.). Soil Resilience and Sustainable Land Use. CAB International, Wallingford, U.K. p. 1–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
21.Harris, R.F., Karlen, D.L., and Mulla, D.J.. 1996. A conceptual framework of assessment and management of soil quality and health. In Doran, J.W. and Jones, A.J. (eds.). Methods for Assessing Soil Quality. SSSA Special Pub. 49. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 61–82.Google Scholar
22.Hillel, D. 1980. Introduction to Soil Physics. Academic Press, Orlando, FL.Google Scholar
23.Huggett, R.J. 1975. Soil landscape systems: A model of soil genesis. Geoderma 13:1–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
24.Kabrick, J.M., Clayton, M.K., McBratney, A.B., and McSweeney, K.. 1997. Cradle-knoll patterns and characteristics on drumlins in northeastern Wisconsin. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. J. 61:595–603.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
25.Karlen, D.L., and Stott, D.E.. 1994. A framework for evaluating physical and chemical indicators of soil quality. In Doran, J.W., Coleman, D.C., Bezdicek, D.F., and Stewart, B.A. (eds.). Defining Soil Quality for a Sustainable Environment. SSSA Special Pub. 35. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 53–72.Google Scholar
26.Karlen, D.L., Mausbach, M.J., Doran, J.W., Cline, R.G., Harris, R.F., and Schuman, G.E.. 1997. Soil quality: A concept, definition, and framework for evaluation. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. J. 61:4–10.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
27.Karlen, D.L., Wollenhaupt, N.C., Erbach, D.C., Berry, E.C., Swan, J.B., Eash, N.S., and Jordahl, J.L.. 1994. Crop residue effects on soil quality following 10 years of no-till corn. Soil Tillage Res. 31:149–167.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
28.Lal, R. 1991. Soil structure and sustainability. J. Sustainable Agric. 1(4):67–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
29.Landon, J.R. (ed.). 1984. Booker Tropical Soil Manual. Booker Agriculture International Limited, New York.Google Scholar
30.Larson, W. E., and Pierce, F. J.. 1994. The dynamics of soil quality as a measure of sustainable management. In Doran, J.W., Coleman, D.C., Bezdicek, D.F., and Stewart, B.A. (eds.). Defining Soil Quality for a Sustainable Environment. SSSA Special Pub. 35. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 37–51.Google Scholar
31.Lavelle, P., Dangerfield, M., Fragoso, C., Eschenbrenner, V., Lopez-Hernandez, D., Pashanasi, B., and Brussard, L.. 1994. The relationship between soil macrofauna and tropical soil fertility. In Woomer, P.L. and Swift, M.J. (eds.). The Biological Management of Tropical Soil Fertility. Wiley-Sayce, Chicester, U.K. p. 137–170.Google Scholar
32.Linden, D.R., Hendrix, P.F., Coleman, D.C., and van Vliet, P.C.J.. 1994. Faunal indicators of soil quality. In Doran, J.W., Coleman, D.C., Bezdicek, D.F., and Stewart, B.A. (eds.). Defining Soil Quality for a Sustainable Environment. SSSA Special Pub. 35. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 91–106.Google Scholar
33.Lowery, B., Arshad, M.A., Lal, R., and Hickey, W.J.. 1996. Soil water parameters and soil quality. In Doran, J.W. and Jones, A.J. (eds.). Methods for Assessing Soil Quality. SSSA Special Pub. 49. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 143–155.Google Scholar
34.MathSoft. 1996. S+SpatialStatistics: User's Manual. Version 1.0. Math-Soft, Inc., Seattle, WA.Google Scholar
35.Moore, I.D., Gessler, P.E., Nielsen, G.A., and Peterson, G.A.. 1993. Soil attribute prediction using terrain analysis. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. J. 57:443–452.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
36.Pasos, R., Girot, P., Laforge, M., Torrealba, P., and Kaimowitz, D.. 1994. El ultimo despale. La frontera agrícola Centroamericana. FUNDESCA, Garnier Relaciones Públicas, S.A., San José, Costa Rica.Google Scholar
37.Pennock, D.J., Anderson, D.W., and de Jong, E.. 1994. Landscape-scale changes in indicators of soil quality due to cultivation in Saskatchewan, Canada. Geoderma 64:1–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
38.Perdomo Bennett, R.A. 1996. Informe de perfil geológico de la microcuenca quebrada el Zapote. Unpublished mimeo.Google Scholar
39.Pettitt, A.N., and McBratney, A.B.. 1993. Sampling designs for estimating spatial variance components. Appl. Stat. 42:185–210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
40.Pla Sentis, I. 1992. Soil conservation constraints on sustained agricultural productivity in tropical Latin America. In Tato, K. and Hurni, H. (eds.). Soil Conservation for Survival. Soil and Water Conservation Society, Ankeny, IA. p. 65–77.Google Scholar
41.Romig, D.E., Garlynd, M.J., and Harris, R.F.. 1996. Farmer-based assessment of soil quality: A soil health scorecard. In Doran, J.W. and Jones, A.J. (eds.). Methods for Assessing Soil Quality. SSSA Special Pub. 49. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. p. 39–60.Google Scholar
42.Ryder, R. 1994. Farmer perception of soils in the mountains of the Dominican Republic. Mtn. Res. Develop. 14:261–266.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
43.Sanchez, P.A. 1976. Properties and Management of Soils in the Tropics. Wiley-Interscience, New York.Google Scholar
44.SAS Institute. 1985. SAS User's Guide: Statistics. Version 5. SAS Institute, Inc., Raleigh, NC.Google Scholar
45.Scherr, S.J. 1993. Developing a strategy for policy research on sustainable development in tropical hillside and mountain areas. In T.R. Roach (ed.). Sustainable Mountain Agriculture. Proceedings of an International Workshop held at ICRAF, Nairobi, Kenya, p. 3–12.Google Scholar
46.Shoji, S., Dahlgren, R., and Nanzyo, M.. 1993. Classification of volcanic ash soils. In Shoji, S., Nanzyo, M., and Dahlgren, R. (eds.). Volcanic Ash Soils: Genesis, Properties, and Utilization. Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam, p. 60–101.Google Scholar
47.Smyth, A.J., and Dumanski, J.. 1995. A framework for evaluating sustainable land management. Can. J. Soil Sci. 75:401–406.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
48.Soil Survey Division Staff. 1994. Soil Survey Manual. USDA Handbook No. 18. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, DC.Google Scholar
49.Soil Survey Laboratory Staff. 1992. Soil Survey Laboratory Methods Manual. Soil Survey Invest. Rep. 42, Version 2.0. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, Washington, DC.Google Scholar
50.Soil Survey Staff. 1996. Keys to Soil Taxonomy. 7th ed. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Washington, DC.Google Scholar
51.Statistical Sciences. 1995. S-PLUS Guide to Statistical and Mathematical Analysis. Version 3.3. StatSci, Seattle, WA.Google Scholar
52.Tiessen, J., Stewart, J.W.B., and Anderson, D.W.. 1994. Determinants of resilience in soil nutrient dynamics. In Greenland, D.J. and Szabolcs, I. (eds.). Soil Resilience and Sustainable Land Use. CAB International, Wallingford, U.K. p. 157–170.Google Scholar
53.Tisdall, J.M., and Oades, J.M.. 1982. Organic matter and water-stable aggregates in soils. J. Soil Sci. 33:141–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
54.Tongway, D.J. 1994. Rangeland Soil Condition Assessment Manual. CSIRO Publications, Canberra, Australia.Google Scholar
55.van Breeman, N. 1993. Soils as biotic constructs favoring net primary productivity. Geoderma 57(3):183–212.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
56.van Wesemael, B., Poese, J., and de Figueiredo, T.. 1995. Effects of rock fragments on physical degradation of cultivated soils by rainfall. Soil Tillage Res. 33:229–250.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
57.Walkley, A., and Black, I.A.. 1934. An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil organic matter and a proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Sci. 37:29–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
58.Woods, L.E., and Schuman, G.E.. 1988. Cultivation and slope position effects on soil organic matter. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. J. 52:1371–1376.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
59.Woomer, P.L., Martin, A., Albrecht, A., Resck, D.V.S., and Scharpenseel, H.W.. 1994. The importance and management of soil organic matter in the tropics. In Woomer, P.L. and Swift, M.J. (eds.). The Biological Management of Soil Fertility. Tropical Soils Biology and Fertility/Wiley-Sayce, Chichester, U.K. p. 47–80.Google Scholar