The influence of geological setting and land use on the physical and chemical properties of the soil at the Fruska Gora Mountain

Abstract

Soil erosion is a problem that affects the landscape at different scales and represents a serious challenge for land management and soil conservation in both natural forests and meadows. The aim of this study was to determine how the parent material and land use affect the physical and chemical properties of the soil in the area of the Fruska Gora Mountain. The soils were separated into five bedrock types: serpentinite, marl, trachyte, shale, loess and two land use types: forest and meadow. Twenty-three forest soil and 24 meadow soil from a depth of 0?20 cm were sampled from the Fruska Gora Mt. The following properties were determined: pH, electrical conductivity, oxidationreduction potential, content of organic carbon, sodium adsorption ratio, aggregate size and stability. There is no statistically significant difference in pH values, redox potential (Eh), electrical conductivity (EC) and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) values between the analysed forest and meadow soils, but there is a statistically significant difference in the content of organic carbon (Corg). It can be concluded that both the parent material, and to a slightly less extent, land use have a great influence on physico-chemical properties of the soil.