Soil Organic Matter Status under Different Agroforestry Management Practices in Three Selected Sites in Kenya

Waswa, Boaz Shabani (2005) Soil Organic Matter Status under Different Agroforestry Management Practices in Three Selected Sites in Kenya. Masters thesis, Kenyatta University.

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Abstract

Soil organic matter (SOM) plays an important role in ensuring a healthy soil status. This study was designed to evaluate the influence of organic resource management on SOM-related soil properties in the Kabete, Maseno and the Embu experiments in Kenya. The choice of these experiments was based on the different organic resources applied, their lifespan as well as their unique ecological locations that characterize most smallholder fanning areas in Kenya. Soil samples were collected from these experiments before the long rains season of 2002 and prepared for analyses. Soils were analyzed for inorganic nitrogen, total carbon, nitrogen, carbon mineralization, bulk density and soil moisture retention. In addition, SOM aggregate and size fractionation, potassium permanganate oxidation and the carbon isotope labeling techniques were used to determine the quality of the various SOM fractions formed. All the data collected was subjected to analyses of variance (ANOVA) and the means separated at P :s 0.05. Mineral N was significantly different (P :s 0.05) across the treatments in HI Embu and PM I Maseno experiments and tended to be higher in organic treatments as compared to the control and the fertilizer treatments. N I Kabete experiment had the lowest C~ N and DC values pointing to the young age of this experiment as well as the low quantity of the organic residues applied. On the other hand, HI Embu experiment had high soil C values of over 2.0% indicating a positive effect of continued application of organic residues. Potassium pennanganate oxidizable carbon was significantly different for N I Kabete and PM I Maseno experiments and tended to vary according to the differences in organic resource management regimes in these experiments.

Item Type:	Thesis (Masters)
Subjects:	S Agriculture > S Agriculture (General) S Agriculture > SD Forestry
Divisions:	Africana
Depositing User:	Tim Khabala
Date Deposited:	28 Mar 2018 12:45
Last Modified:	28 Mar 2018 12:45
URI:	http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/3634

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