Effects of Various Land Uses in Stewart County, TN on Selected Soil Properties

Effects of Various Land Uses in Stewart County, TN on Selected Soil Properties T. McIntyre & I.P. Handayani Murray State University, Hutson School of Agriculture Different land uses have various effects on physical and chemical properties of the soil. The goal of this study is to examine the impact of six land uses located in Stewart County, TN on selected soil properties, include soil water content, bulk density, soil organic matter, and soil acidity levels. The land uses examined include a tobacco field, hardwood forest, corn/soybean rotation, garden, lawn, and a pasture. The garden and tobacco field are plowed using conventional tillage methods for up to 30 years. The corn/soybean field is no-till system for 6 years. The forest, pasture and lawn are not plowed at all. Disturbed soil samples from topsoil, 0-4” deep, were collected from each field to determine pH and organic matter content. Undisturbed soil samples of two depths, 0-7” and 7-14” (horizon A, horizon B), were collected from each field for soil water content, and bulk density. The results show that the tobacco field had the highest bulk density at both depths with (1.10 g/cm3) at horizon A and (1.14 g/cm3) at horizon B, while the garden had the lowest bulk density for both depths with (0.66 g/cm3) at horizon A and (0.67 g/cm3) at horizon B. The lawn had the highest soil water content at both depths with (17.8%) at horizon A and (20.0%) at horizon B. The hardwood forest had the lowest soil water content at horizon A with (14.5%) and the corn/soybean field had the lowest soil water content at horizon B with (10.3%). The forest had the highest soil organic matter content (10.7 %) while the tobacco field had the lowest (3.2 %). The garden’s soil had the highest pH of 5.8, while the tobacco field had the lowest pH of 5.0. However, all fields were considered in the acid range. The finding of this study provides implications that can help farmers to make decision regarding to the soil management for better growing media. Keywords: Bulk Density, Organic Matter, pH, Soil Water Conten