Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Stock and Their Spatial Variability Along an Exclosure Chronosequence at Kewet District, Central Dry Lowlands of Ethiopia

Abstract

Empirical evidence and a better explanation of the effect of exclosures on soil properties are needed to rehabilitate degraded land and properly utilize the restored ecosystem. This study was conducted to determine soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) stocks and to map their spatial distribution and aggregate stability along open grazing land, 5, 15, and 20 years exclosure, and three slope positions. To map the spatial distribution of SOC and TN stocks an ordinary kriging interpolation method was applied. The results showed that the age of exclosure had significantly (p 250 µm) and microaggregates (<250 µm) varied significantly (p