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Remediation of saline-sodic soil using organic and inorganic amendments: physical, chemical, and enzyme activity properties

  • Soils, Sec 3 • Remediation and Management of Contaminated or Degraded Lands • Research Article
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Abstract

Purpose

Crops grow poorly in saline-sodic soils, and the productivity of these soils can be dramatically improved with proper amendments. Current research mainly focuses on either organic or inorganic soil amendments, whereas few studies address options of combining organic and inorganic amendments. The objective of this study was to develop new organic and inorganic soil amendments which can lower the soil pH, replace sodium, and improve soil structure.

Materials and methods

Polyhalite (PL), microporous potassium-silicon-calcium mineral fertilizer (MF), furfural residue (FR), and fulvic acid (FA) were mixed with four different ratios to produce organic and inorganic soil amendments: PLFR, PLFA, MFFR, and MFFA. And their optimum mixing ratios were determined by comparing the potassium, calcium concentrations, and pH of filtrate after dissolution. Then, a leaching experiment was conducted by packing mixtures (mass ratio of soil to amendment = 219:1, equivalent to 13 t/hm2) of the saline-sodic soil with each one of these amendments plus two contrasts, gypsum (GP), and no amendment (CK). And the remediation effect was compared by pH, EC, ESP, texture, organic recombination degree of clay, saturated hydraulic conductivity, water-stable aggregates fraction, and enzyme (urease, alkaline phosphatase, and catalase) activities of soil.

Results and discussion

After four times leaching experiment, soil treated with PLFR had lower pH and 25.86% lower exchangeable sodium than untreated soils. The water-stable small macroaggregate fractions and saturated hydraulic conductivity of the MFFR-treated soils were significantly increased by 133% and 31%, respectively. Also, the total soil and heavy fraction organic carbons of the soils treated with MFFR in addition to its alkaline phosphatase activity were all significantly higher than the other treatments.

Conclusions

The results revealed that MFFR has more potential as a soil amendment to improve soil structure and quality and thus help in the development and use of saline-sodic lands for agriculture.

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Acknowledgments

We sincerely thank Cliff G. Martin, University of Florida, for reviewing this manuscript and Key Laboratory of Mineral Resources, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Science, for providing raw materials.

Funding

This research was funded by Shandong Province Key R&D Program (2017CXGC0306), Shandong Agricultural Innovation Team (SDAIT-17-04), Taishan Industrial Experts Program (LJNY201609), National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFD0200702), and the Taishan Industrial Leading Talent Program of Shandong Province (No. tscy20160109).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Engineering Laboratory for Efficient Utilization of Soil and Fertilizer Resources, National Engineering & Technology Research Center for Slow and Controlled Release Fertilizers, College of Resources and Environment, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, Shandong, China

    Shan Li, Yuechao Yang, Yafu Tang, Jiazhuo Xie & Hongcheng Zhao

  2. Department of Soil and Water Sciences, Tropical Research and Education Center, IFAS, University of Florida, Homestead, FL, 33031, USA

    Yuechao Yang & Yuncong Li

  3. Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    Bin Gao

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  1. Shan Li
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  2. Yuechao Yang
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  3. Yuncong Li
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Correspondence to Yuechao Yang.

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Li, S., Yang, Y., Li, Y. et al. Remediation of saline-sodic soil using organic and inorganic amendments: physical, chemical, and enzyme activity properties. J Soils Sediments 20, 1454–1467 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-019-02510-4

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