Assessment of soil quality indicators on different slope aspects in Duhok’s highlands (Kurdistan region – Iraq).

Volume 18 , Issue 2 , February 2016 , Pages 209-220

Authors

¹ Department of Soil & Water, Faculty Agriculture and Forestry, University of Duhok, Duhok / Kurdistan Region-Iraq

This study was conducted to assess the influence of slope aspect on some physical, chemical

and biological indicators of soil quality in Mountain in Brifka village that located at about

20 km east of Duhok province in Iraqi Kurdistan region, having the same climatic, and

vegetation. Soil samples were collected randomly and at uniform intervals along north and

south facing slopes aspect. The soil quality has been represented by some physical,

chemical and biological indicators such as: soil texture, bulk density, moisture content,

organic carbon, pH, electrical conductivity, soil basal respiration, microbial biomass C,

potentially mineralizable N and metabolic quotient. The results indicated that, except in few

cases, the majority of studied soil quality indicators were significantly affected by slope

aspect. The mount of soil moisture content, silt mineral fraction, soil organic C, soil basal

respiration, microbial biomass was significantly higher in north facing slope compared to

south facing slope, while sand fraction and bulk density were significant higher on south

aspect than north aspect. No significant differences were found in clay fraction, soil pH,

electrical conductivity, potentially mineralizable N and metabolic content. It was suggested

that the slope aspect has effects on soil quality indicators and for better rangeland and

landscape management it is very important to take the topographic aspect into

consideration.

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