Premium
Estimating Forest Soil Quality from Terrain Measurements of Apparent Electrical Conductivity
Author(s) -
McBride R. A.,
Shrive S. C.,
Gordon A. M.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
soil science society of america journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1435-0661
pISSN - 0361-5995
DOI - 10.2136/sssaj1990.03615995005400010047x
Subject(s) - edaphic , soil science , soil water , environmental science , terrain , electrical resistivity and conductivity , cation exchange capacity , hydrology (agriculture) , geology , ecology , geotechnical engineering , electrical engineering , biology , engineering
A portable, noncontacting electromagnetic induction meter was employed to measure the apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) of nonsaline, medium‐ and coarse‐textured forest soils on Manitoulin Island, Ontario. In simple linear regressions, bulk soil ECa was strongly correlated with ECe (saturated‐extract electrical conductivity), as well as exchangeable Ca, exchangeable Mg, and cation exchange capacity. Within the limited study area, these soil characteristics were thought to be major determinants of forest soil quality for red oak ( Quercus rubra L.) production. Multiple stepwise regression showed that variations in exchangeable Ca and total Kjeldahl N concentrations accounted for a large proportion of the variation in ECa meter response ( R 2 = 0.871). The potential of this geophysical terrain measurement method as an integrator of edaphic properties important to forest site productivity is discussed.