Soil Aggregation as Affected by Cultivation under Low and Upland Situations

The effect of land situations (upland vs. lowland) and its uses (fallow vs. cultivation) on soil aggregation was studied in humid tropical Inceptisol profiles of West Bengal. Soil organic carbon (SOC) produced higher variability than clay to the make up of aggregate stability. Cultivation induced 16.8 and 15.2% losses of soil organic carbon (SOC) under low and upland situations that caused 15.8 and 30.8% reduction in aggregate stability as compared to fallow. Disintegration of structure due to tillage advocated a loss of C-rich macroaggregates leading to a lower aggregate ratio. Fallow produced lower bulk density and higher macroporosity as compared to cultivation. Land situation explained the lowest difference in mean weight diameter and geometric mean diameter values. Fallow resulted in sustainable soil aggregation as compared to cultivation under both the land situations.