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Improvement of aeolian sandy soil in Mu Us, China with soft montmorillonite clay stone
Author(s) -
Zhang Haiou,
Guo Zhen,
Li Juan,
Lu Yangjie,
Xu Yan
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.1002/agj2.20492
Subject(s) - soil water , montmorillonite , agronomy , sowing , soil texture , soil structure , yield (engineering) , environmental science , soil science , chemistry , materials science , biology , organic chemistry , metallurgy
Abstract Aeolian sandy soil, common in Mu Us, China has poor structure and water holding capacity. The soft montmorillonite clay stone was used to adjust the structure and characteristics of sand soil. In this study, the soft montmorillonite clay stone was mixed with sand in the volume ratios of 1:1, 1:2, and 1:5. Soil texture, organic matter content (OMC), and effects on crop yield from 2010 to 2018 were determined. When corn ( Zea mays L.) was planted, the clay content, fractal dimension (FD), and OMC of the 1:2 compound soil showed a steadily increasing trend with a higher rate than the 1:1 and 1:5 compound soil. When potato ( Solanum tuberosum L.) was planted, the increasing rates of the FD and OMC were largest in the 1:5 compound soil. Potato planting increased the FD of the soil particles by 15.3%, and the OMC was 13.76 times higher than it was prior to planting. Corn and potato crops had the largest sustainable yield index (SYI) and average yield, and the smallest coefficient of variation (CV) in the 1:2 and 1:5 compound soils, respectively. This indicated that 1:2 and 1:5 compound soils allowed for the highest yield stability and sustainability. The 1:2 and 1:5 compound soils were suitable for corn and potato growth, and the compound soil properties exhibited a sustainable and stable development trend. Therefore, this indicates that 1:2–1:5 compound ratios can be used as the optimum sand clay ratios for improving the characteristics of aeolian sandy soil using soft rock.