Arid Zone Research ›› 2021, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (1): 114-122.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2021.01.13

• Soil Resources • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Characteristics of salinization and fertility of saline-alkali soil adjacent to drainage ditch in Hetao irrigation area of Inner Mongolia

ZHOU Liying(),LI Ruiping(),MIAO Qingfeng,DOU Xu,TIAN Feng,YU Dandan,SUN Chenyun   

  1. College of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010018, Inner Mongolia, China
  • Received:2020-06-28 Revised:2020-08-30 Online:2021-01-15 Published:2021-03-05
  • Contact: Ruiping LI E-mail:1475531298@qq.com;nmglrp@163.com

Abstract:

Reasonable improvement of saline-alkali soil in Hetao irrigation area adjacent to drainage ditch irrigation area can effectively promote ecological restoration and sustainable agricultural development. We analyzed saline-alkali soil’s salinization and fertility characteristics adjacent to drainage ditch irrigation area in Urad Front Banner with descriptive statistical analysis and principal component analysis. The soil in the study area has heavy chloride saline, with Mg2+ being the key cation of soil salinization. The excessive content slows down the absorption rate and increase soil’s alkalization rate. Soil’s alkalinity in 0-40 cm depth ranged from 13.0%-28.6%. The alkalinity degree we observed was caused because calcium carbonate could not prevent the soil from absorbing sodium ions. On the other hand, Mg2+ in soil could not promote Na+ adsorption, and there was a function correlation between soil’s pH, alkalinity, and total alkalinity. The principal component analysis results showed that the soil salinity, Cl-, Ca2+, Mg2+, pH, total alkalinity, and alkalinity were the main factors of soil salinization. The soil in the study area was potassium-rich, whereas other fertility levels were low. The soil adjacent to the drainage ditch belongs to compound saline-alkali chloride soil and alkaline soil. Such soils are hard to cultivate because of particle dispersion, muddy, impermeable characteristics, and low fertility, requiring soil enrichment with fertility elements other than potassium. Our study contributes significantly for analyzing the saline-alkali soil in the Hetao irrigation area, allowing rational land use policy and ecological improvement measures to be taken and incentivizing regional sustainable development.

Key words: drainage ditch, salinization, salt ion, alkalization degree, principal component analysis, fertility, Inner Mongolia