Moisture Release Behaviour of Orange-Growing Soils Developed from Different Parent Materials in Jhalawar District of Rajasthan

Variation in water retention characteristics has been evaluated in soils developed on Vindhyan scarplands and Malwa plateau from sandstone and shale with band of limestone and basaltic parent materials, respectively. Six typifying pedons from Vindhyan scarplands and eight from Malwa plateau representing dominant landforms have been studied for their physicochemical properties and water retention at various suctions. The higher values of water retention (0.69 and 0.38 m³ m⁻³) at 0.03 and 1.5 MPa were recorded in soils of basaltic origin (P12), whereas the corresponding values were very low (0.32 and 0.13 m³ m⁻³) in soils of sandstone and shale with band of limestone (P6 and P5). The variability in water retention at various suctions (0.03, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 MPa) was governed by clay content and associated soil properties. In general, water retention increased down the depth of profile in the pedons, which have increasing pattern of clay content in both the parent materials, at lower and higher suction pressures. The available water content ranged from 0.15 to 0.29 m³ m⁻³ with mean value of 0.20 m³ m⁻³ in soils of sandstone and shale with band of limestone, while in basaltic soils it varied from 0.14 to 0.31 m³ m⁻³ with mean content of 0.20 m³ m⁻³.