CE: 8015 CF: cag022162071
SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE
Effect of soil use on their quality, in areas of the farm “Baños de Marrero”
Efecto del uso del suelo sobre su calidad en áreas de la Finca “Baños de Marrero”
Edith Aguila Alcantara, Yasser Marrero Pérez, Héctor Pablo Hernández Arboláez, Yanetsy Ruiz González
Universidad Central “Marta Abreu” de Las Villas (UCLV), Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Carretera a Camajuaní km 5,5, Santa Clara, Cuba. CP 54830.
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
ABSTRACT
Two areas (a natural and an agricultural ecosystem), located on brown calcareous soil (correla- ted to Order Inceptisol, Subgroup Mollic Eutrudept in the Soil Taxonomy system), were chosen with the aim of assessing the effect of agricultural land use on soil quality using the compared scenarios perspective. The physical indicators analyzed were aggregate stabled, permeability coefficient, the factor of structure, lower and upper limits of plasticity, as well as, the index of plasticity. The chemical indicators measured were pH (H2O), pH (KCl), organic matter content, and levels of P2O5 and K2O. Soil microbiology was analyzed by plate coun- ting. For mesofauna extraction was used the funnel methodology of Berlese-Tullgren. Data processing was done using STATGRAPHICS vs 5.0 on Windows 7. The results demonstrated that the physical status of the soil was good in both ecosystems. Significant differences were found for pH, organic matter content, levels of P2O5 and K2O, and in the microbial population. However, no differences were found in mesofauna components; but, the principal components analyses showed that the differentiation between both ecosystems is more de- fined by the mesofauna and microbiological indicators.
