Effect of Soil Use and Coverage on the Spectral Response of an Oxisol in the VIS-NIR-MIR Region

In this study, the spectral responses obtained from a Typic Red Hapludox (oxisol) were analyzed under different uses and occupations: Ficus elastica cultivation, Citrus + Arachis association cultivation, transitional crops, forest, Mangifera indica, Anacardium occidentale, Elaeis guineensis (18 years), Brachiaria decumbens, Brachiaria brizantha, and Musa × paradisiaca + Zea mays at the La Libertad Research Center in the department of Meta in Colombia (4°04′ North latitude, 73°30′ West longitude, 330 MAMSL). Sampling was performed with four random replicates of the horizon A and B to determine the contents of organic carbon (CO), pH, exchangeable acidity (Ac. I), cation exchange capacity (Cc), P, Ca, Mg, K, Na, sand, lime, and clay and spectral responses were obtained in the visible band (VIS), near infrared (NIR), and infrared (MIR) for each sample under laboratory conditions. A comparison was made between the obtained spectra, determining the main changes in soil properties due to their use and coverage. Variation of soil characteristics such as color, organic carbon content, presence of ferrous compounds, sand, silt, and clay content and mineralogy allow the identification of the main spectral changes of soils, demonstrating the importance of the use of reflectance spectroscopy as a tool of comparison and estimation between physical-chemical properties of the soils