Impact of Different Land Use Systems under Hill Ecosystem of Manipur on Macronutrient Status of Soils

Abstract

Land use changes influence soil properties in hill ecosystems of Manipur. This study evaluated soil properties under five land use systems—forest land, grassland, paddy lowland, current jhum, and jhum fallow—in Chandel district, Manipur, India. Soil samples were collected from 21 locations for each land use system at two depths (0–15 and 15–30 cm), producing 210 composite samples. The samples were analysed for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), organic carbon (OC), available nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). Significant variations in soil physico-chemical properties and macronutrient availability were observed among land use systems at both depths. All soils were acidic. Forest soils generally showed higher OC, available N, and available P with the values of 18.43 and 14.14 g kg⁻¹ OC, 251.11 and 212.71 kg ha⁻¹ N, and 18.91 and 14.44 kg ha⁻¹ P at the surface and sub-surface depths, respectively. Available K was highest under current jhum, with the values of 232.32 and 225.92 kg ha⁻¹ at both depths, respectively. Paddy lowland recorded the highest EC at both depths. However, there was no salinity hazard. Soil pH increased with depth, whereas EC, OC, available N, P, and K generally decreased with depth. Overall, forest land exhibited the most favourable nutrient status among the studied systems, followed by grassland, while the depth-wise trends indicated greater nutrient concentration in surface soils.