Forests are vital ecosystems that protect watersheds, maintain biodiversity, and support indigenous ways of life. Topography, particularly slope gradient, influences soil growth and soil moisture storage, affecting plant structure and vegetation. Soil properties, such as drainage, soil erosion, and textural composition, also vary due to topography. Soil erosion in Ethiopia is a significant issue due to steep terrain, erosive rains, and human activities. This leads to soil organic carbon losses and redistribution, resulting in a 3.4% loss of land productivity. The Gara Ades woodland, home to indigenous and exotic trees, has a diverse vegetation cover and soil type. However, there is limited research on the impact of slope gradients on soil physical and chemical characteristics in this area. This study aimed to investigate the impact of slope gradient differences on soil physical and chemical attributes in the Gara Ades forest. Clinometers, tripods, ropes, and meters were used to measure slope gradients and compute slope gradient classification. Primarily, slope classes were set purposefully, with lower slope class (LSC: <10%), middle slope class (MSC: >10–20%), and upper slope class (USC: >20–<30%). Soil samples were collected from 45 experimental main quadrants using auger at a depth of 30 cm, followed by composite soil sample preparation. Results of soil texture class analysis shows that there is no significant difference in soil particles of sand and clay among slope gradient classes, but, silt soil indicated a significant difference. However, results of soil chemical content parameters shows that, the potential of Hydrogen (pH), Electrical Conductivity (EC), Organic Carbon (OC), Organic Matter (OM), Total Nitrogen (TN), Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), available Potassium (K), Sodium (Na) and Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) have a significance difference (p < 0.05) among slope gradient classes; whereas, available Phosphorus (P) has no significance difference. The highest mean value of pH, EC, OC, OM, TN, Ca, Mg, K, Na, and CEC was observed in LSC followed by MSC and USC. The significant effect (p < 0.05) of slope gradient class difference can be summarized as LSC > MSC > USC for all soil chemical property parameters. Generally, results of this study revealed that slope gradient differences and their interaction had a significant effect on soil physicochemical properties. The disparity of slope gradient should have to be considered during further ecological studies in the study area as well as other mountainous sites to reduce deviations that occur due to slope gradient variation.
| Published in | American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry (Volume 11, Issue 6) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12 |
| Page(s) | 218-227 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Topography, Slope Gradient, Soil Chemical Properties, Soil Texture Properties, Soil Erosion
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APA Style
Furgasa, M., Zewdu, T. (2023). Effect of Slope Gradient on Soil Attributes of Gara Ades Forest in Western Hararghe Zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia. American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 11(6), 218-227. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12
ACS Style
Furgasa, M.; Zewdu, T. Effect of Slope Gradient on Soil Attributes of Gara Ades Forest in Western Hararghe Zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia. Am. J. Agric. For. 2023, 11(6), 218-227. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12
AMA Style
Furgasa M, Zewdu T. Effect of Slope Gradient on Soil Attributes of Gara Ades Forest in Western Hararghe Zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia. Am J Agric For. 2023;11(6):218-227. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12
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Download@article{10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12,
author = {Melese Furgasa and Tessema Zewdu},
title = {Effect of Slope Gradient on Soil Attributes of Gara Ades Forest in Western Hararghe Zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia},
journal = {American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry},
volume = {11},
number = {6},
pages = {218-227},
doi = {10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajaf.20231106.12},
abstract = {Forests are vital ecosystems that protect watersheds, maintain biodiversity, and support indigenous ways of life. Topography, particularly slope gradient, influences soil growth and soil moisture storage, affecting plant structure and vegetation. Soil properties, such as drainage, soil erosion, and textural composition, also vary due to topography. Soil erosion in Ethiopia is a significant issue due to steep terrain, erosive rains, and human activities. This leads to soil organic carbon losses and redistribution, resulting in a 3.4% loss of land productivity. The Gara Ades woodland, home to indigenous and exotic trees, has a diverse vegetation cover and soil type. However, there is limited research on the impact of slope gradients on soil physical and chemical characteristics in this area. This study aimed to investigate the impact of slope gradient differences on soil physical and chemical attributes in the Gara Ades forest. Clinometers, tripods, ropes, and meters were used to measure slope gradients and compute slope gradient classification. Primarily, slope classes were set purposefully, with lower slope class (LSC: 10–20%), and upper slope class (USC: >20– MSC > USC for all soil chemical property parameters. Generally, results of this study revealed that slope gradient differences and their interaction had a significant effect on soil physicochemical properties. The disparity of slope gradient should have to be considered during further ecological studies in the study area as well as other mountainous sites to reduce deviations that occur due to slope gradient variation.
},
year = {2023}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Effect of Slope Gradient on Soil Attributes of Gara Ades Forest in Western Hararghe Zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia AU - Melese Furgasa AU - Tessema Zewdu Y1 - 2023/11/11 PY - 2023 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12 DO - 10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12 T2 - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry JF - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry JO - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry SP - 218 EP - 227 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2330-8591 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20231106.12 AB - Forests are vital ecosystems that protect watersheds, maintain biodiversity, and support indigenous ways of life. Topography, particularly slope gradient, influences soil growth and soil moisture storage, affecting plant structure and vegetation. Soil properties, such as drainage, soil erosion, and textural composition, also vary due to topography. Soil erosion in Ethiopia is a significant issue due to steep terrain, erosive rains, and human activities. This leads to soil organic carbon losses and redistribution, resulting in a 3.4% loss of land productivity. The Gara Ades woodland, home to indigenous and exotic trees, has a diverse vegetation cover and soil type. However, there is limited research on the impact of slope gradients on soil physical and chemical characteristics in this area. This study aimed to investigate the impact of slope gradient differences on soil physical and chemical attributes in the Gara Ades forest. Clinometers, tripods, ropes, and meters were used to measure slope gradients and compute slope gradient classification. Primarily, slope classes were set purposefully, with lower slope class (LSC: 10–20%), and upper slope class (USC: >20– MSC > USC for all soil chemical property parameters. Generally, results of this study revealed that slope gradient differences and their interaction had a significant effect on soil physicochemical properties. The disparity of slope gradient should have to be considered during further ecological studies in the study area as well as other mountainous sites to reduce deviations that occur due to slope gradient variation. VL - 11 IS - 6 ER -
Range Ecology and Biodiversity, Fedis Agricultural Research Center, Oromia Agricultural Research Institute, Harar, Ethiopia
