Comparative study of physicochemical properties and micronutrients concentrations in different soil profiles of Western Odisha

Abstract:

Soil micronutrients play a vital role in maintaining soil fertility, plant growth, and agricultural productivity. However, increasing agricultural intensification, continuous cropping, and imbalanced nutrient management have led to widespread micronutrient deficiencies in soils. The present study was undertaken to conduct a comparative analysis of micronutrient distribution in different soil profiles and to evaluate the influence of soil physicochemical properties and land use patterns on their availability. Total concentration of micronutrients including iron (45.4766±0.153 mg/kg), zinc (25.473± 0.529 mg/kg), copper (23.78±0.295 mg/kg), manganese (29.63±0.3776 mg/kg), and boron (7.6±0.228 mg/kg) was found to be in adequate concentration in 15cm depth of agricultural soil because of high accumulation of organic matter, nitrogen and phosphorus in soil. Soil organic carbon increases in the upper layer, promoting macroaggregation formation that reduces compaction risk and enhances soil water retention capacity. Furthermore, Pearson’s coefficient of correlation shown positive correlation between soil organic carbon (SOC) with all physicochemical variables that represents, elevated SOC levels stabilizes soil pH (r = 0.939; p< 0.01) and improve soil electrical conductivity (r = 0.925; p< 0.01). Micronutrients such as Zn, Fe, Mn, Cu and B positively influenced physicochemical attributes such as pH, electrical conductivity and SOC. The current study helps to develop suitable management strategies to improve soil quality and health across different land use patterns.