Assessment of physical properties of soils subjected to organic farming practices in arid and semi-arid regions of Haryana, India

Abstract

Management practices are considered to be the most important contributors to soil production and productivity through the alteration of the soil physical conditions in conjunction with the other properties, therefore, the present investigation was carried out to compare the physical properties of texturally different soils of Haryana (India) subjected to organic and conventional farming practices. Fifty surface soil samples (0-15 cm) were collected from organic and their adjoining conventional farms at 11 districts of Haryana. Samples were analyzed for soil texture, bulk density, infiltration rate, aggregate size distribution and moisture retention characteristics for the two types of farming systems. Organic farming reduced the average bulk density values from 1.47 to 1.45 Mg m-3 while infiltration rate was observed to be higher in organic soils. Similarly, water stable aggregates (WSA >0.25 mm) of organic soils were higher (39.92 %) as compared to conventionally managed soils (35.19 %). Moisture content at field capacity and plant available water were significantly increased from 21.31 and 14.86 % to 23.12 and 16.57 % in soils under organic farming. Organic soils were found to have better soil quality in terms of physical properties which is considered to be crucial for enhancing productivity while sustaining natural resources.