Document Type : Research Article
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Abstract
Conversion of forest and pasture lands into agricultural lands, which is triggered by the rapid population growth, causes serious soil degradation, especially in the hilly regions with undulating topography. The objective of this study was to explore the slope position and land use change effects on some soil properties in hilly region of west of Isfahan province, Feryduhahr district. In the two mentioned dominant ecosystems, four slope positions including summit, shoulder, backs lope and foot slope were identified and in each land use and slope position, three cores were selected to collect 72 soil samples from three depths (0–10, 10–20, 20–30 cm). The results showed that soil organic matter (SOM) in pasture land (2.1%) was approximately 40% higher than cu1tivated land (1.2%). Overall, SOM, total nitrogen, available potassium, clay and sand content significantly in pasture land were higher than cu1tivated land. In consequence of land use change from pasture to cultivated land, some soil properties in surface soils including calcium carbonate, bulk density and soil acidity showed increasing tendency as compared to pasture soils. The pasture soil with lower soil erosion and higher fine materials (clay), indicated higher magnetic susceptibility as compared to cultivated land. Variability of most of measured soil properties showed significant differences in different slope positions. Improper management practices and consequently water soil erosion was identified as the most possible process which has affected soil properties in different slope positions. In overall, it is conc1uded that slope positions and land use significantly influenced soil physical, chemical and magnetic properties in steep slopes of the study area.
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