ASPECTS REGARDING THE VARIABILITY OF SOME PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF THE SOILS IN THE BĂNDOIU AREA, THE GREAT BRĂILA ISLAND

Abstract

The current status of Great Brăila Island is the result of an extensive activity of damming/draining/land reclamation of the Brăila Swamp with the aim to be used in agriculture. The final areas obtained from this complex activity preserve the specific variability of the flood areas. In order to be used in agricultural purposes, they need crop technologies which capitalize the physical and chemical soil properties.

In order to highlight this variability, physical and chemical analysis on soil samples have been done. The analyzes highlighted the following: the soil texture is uniform (clayey and clay-loamy); the indicators characterizing the structural soil state indicate a good structural aggregation; soil reaction is weakly alkaline on the profile for the entire area; humus content varies from low to medium; the total nitrogen content varies from low to high (the vast majority of samples having medium contents); available phosphorus content varies from high to very high; available potassium content ranges from medium to very high; the total content of soluble salts indicates non-saline soils, while the total cation exchange capacity has medium and high values. The statistical analysis of the studied indicators indicates a coefficient of variation with values between 1.99% for the soil reaction and 53.17% for the structural instability index. Detailed analysis of these coefficients indicate a higher variability for the easily exchangeable indicators (such as nutrient supply) and a lower variability for stable elements (total cation exchange capacity, soil texture and soil reaction, being dependent on parent material). The results of the study highlights a relative homogeneity of the area, the indicators varying inside the same class of values, allowing the application of homogenous agricultural technologies on the study area.