The agro environmental problems such as soil degradation, erosion and deterioration of soil quality coupled with frequent seasonal droughts are major threats for sustained agricultural production in dryland region of Pulivendula tehsil (mapped area of 128609 ha) in Rayalseema plateau of Andhra Pradesh. The spatial information on agroland resources is scanty to assess current status of the soil quality under banana growing areas and its impact on erosion and decline in productivity. The land resource inventory on 1:25000scale was performed using false colour compsite (FCC) images of IRS-P6-LISS-IV data as topobase. Twenty five soil series were classified upto subgroup level in the order of alfisols (5), inceptisols (46%), vertisols (13%) and entisols (4%) and derived soil map with 43 mapping units as soil series association. These soils are lightly to moderately alkaline with low salt concentration (mean EC <0.5dSm-1) and high ESP (>7.61% in case of soils on shale) and moderately deep (mean of 97.81cm) to very deep as compared to soils on quartzite (mean of 30.75cm). These soils were evaluated as not susceptible (60764 hectares, soil erodability (K) of < 0.15 t ha h ha−1 MJ−1 mm−1) to weakly susceptible to water erosion (29037hectares, K < 0.20). In the present study, the Muencheberg soil quality rating (SQR) method was used and estimated that 42.62 per cent of area under hills and ridges have very poor soil quality and mean soil loss of 38.75t/ha/year (very high) but in interhill basins and colluvio-alluvial complex, have moderate soil quality with mean soil loss of 12.56 t/ha/year (high). The study stated that the systematic soil resource inventory programmes are very important for structuring soil-landscape information and for encouraging high intensive banana growing areas under drip irrigation system in the region.
Original Article
P. 9-22
