Impact of Selected Soil and Water Conservation Measures on Sustainability of Soil Moisture Content at Bambasi District, Benishangul Gumuz Region, Ethiopia

Conservation of soil and water resources is important for sustainability of agriculture and environment. Soil and water resources are under immense pressure due to ever increasing population thereby ensuring growing demand for food, fiber and shelter. Soil and water resources are being deteriorated due to different anthropogenic and natural factors. Soil erosion is one of the several major deteriorative processes which results in deterioration of the soil. Agriculture in Ethiopia is subjected by rain fed farming with low productivity especially dry land Part of the country, like bambasi distrct of Benishangul gumuz region. As a result, crops have severe moisture stress through their growth stages. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted at bambasi distrct farmers own land by newly established selected conservation measures in the year of 2016 to analyze the impact of selected soil and water conservation measures (soil bund, grass mulch and contour cultivation), enhancing soil moisture and thereby land productivity. The experiment was arranged in a random complete block design with three replications. The analysis of variance for the results of the study indicated that significant differences were observed in soil moisture content at different soil depths at an interval of 15 days. Statistically not significant measurement were recorded between soil bund and contour cultivation in some measuring interval and depths, but reasonable difference was obtained in grass mulch treatment throughout the season in all measuring depth. Therefore, grass mulch should be recommended to reduce the risk of moisture stress and to ensure sustainability of soil moisture in the study area.