Hagerenesh SANKURA¹, Bekele LEMMA² & Nand RAM^1*
1School of Plant and Horticultural Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia, Email: sankurahagere@yahoo.com
²School of Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, Hawassa University, Ethiopia, Email:bekelelemma@gmail.com
*Present address: Faculty of Agricultural Sciences & Technology, A. K. S. University, Satna, M.P., India, Email: dr_nandram@yahoo.co.in

EFFECT OF CHANGING NATURAL FOREST AND WETLAND TO OTHER LAND USES ON SOIL PROPERTIES AND STOCKS OF CARBON AND NITROGEN IN SOUTH ETHIOPIA

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In South Ethiopia, effects of changing two land uses, namely, natural forest (NF) and wetland (WL) each to cropland (CL) and eucalyptus plantation (EP) on soil physical and chemical properties at 0-15 and 15-30 cm depth as well as stocks of soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (N) in upper 30 cm depth were studied. In general conversion of both NF and WL to CL and EP in surface soil increased the bulk density, reduced the soil pH, available P and cation exchange capacity (CEC). SOC and total N concentrations declined by conversion of both NF and WL to CL and EP. Stocks of SOC also declined and it was in the order NF or WL > CL > EP for each conversions. On changing NF to CL-1 and EP-1, stocks of SOC declined by 43.2 and 65.0 Mg ha^-1; and WL to CL-2 and EP-2 the respective reductions were 14.1 and 24.4 Mg ha^-1. Total N stocks declined by 1.3 and 1.1 Mg ha^-1 on changing NF to CL-1 and EP-1, respectively. For WL changing to both CL-2 and EP-2, total N stock declined by 0.8 Mg ha^-1.The results suggested that integrated nutrient management (INM) is necessary to restore degraded soil quality and sequester SOC under changed land uses.