Soil Nutrients, pH and Moistures affecting Productivity of Nipa-Nipa Forest Park in Kendari South East Sulawesi
Alan Saputra 1), Samuel Arung Paembonan2), Mukrimin Mukrimin 2), Nirwana Nirwana 3), Sultan Sultan 3)

1) Master Student, Department of Forestry, Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia
2) Department of Forestry, Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Indonesia
3) Program Study of Forestry, Faculty of Agriculture, Muhammadiyah University of Makassar, Indonesia

* Corresponding author^s email: mukrimin[at]unhas.ac.id- Tel.: +6281342408144

Abstract

Soil is one of the most important natural resources for plant growth and production. Soil provides nutrients as food ingredients needed by plants to support their growth. Productivity and plant growth are strongly influenced by the physical and chemical soil properties. The study aimed to analyze the physical and chemical soil properties of the Grand Forest Park (Tahura) of Nipa-Nipa Kendari for both utilization and protected block areas.
The Sampling was carried out at the Kendari Nipa-Nipa Kendari Forest Utilization and Protection Blocks and in four months, namely June to September 2022. Furthermore, analysis of soil properties was carried out at the Laboratory of Silviculture and Tree Physiology, Faculty of Forestry, Hasanuddin University. The soil samples were taken from disturbed soil collected from 27 predetermined measuring plots. Measuring plots were placed by purposive sampling at five distinguished altitude levels. Soil samples were taken at 5 points and three soil depth namely 0-20 cm, 20-40 cm and 40-60 cm, respectively. Correlation Analysis applied Principal Component Analysis (PCA) by using Minitab 18 software.
The study revealed that the Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium in the protected block area was higher than the utilization block area. In general, the soil pH content in each block showed that the deeper soil was the higher pH and the moister of the soil. The high nutrient content in the Protected block area was affected by the condition of the forest which is still maintained, so that the micro and macro nutrient cycles can proceed properly. While, the utilization block area has been converted into plantations which has resulted in an imbalance in the nutrient cycle. The high soil pH was thought to be caused by the leaching of the soil surface by surface run-off and soil erosion, while the high soil moisture is thought to be due to soil sampling carried out after the rainy season.

Keywords: Soil Physical Properties, Soil Chemical Properties, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium

Topic: Biodiversity, soil health and agricultural practices