Soil quality assessment is essential to improve the understanding of soil quality and make proper agricultural practices. However, soil quality assessments are extremely difficult to implement in a large-scale area, since they are time and labor consuming. Remote sensing technique gained more attention in plant and soil information monitoring recently for its high effi-ciency and convenience. But seldom studies tested the applicability of remote sensing techniques before implementing. This study conducted the soil quality assessment in a typical agricultural county in the Yellow River delta (Kenli). We found the soil quality in Kenli was dominantly in the low grade (71.85%), with deficient nutrient (SOM and TN), poor structure (high BD) and high EC. Salinity is the primary limiting factor for soil quality in Kenli, and adjustment of soil salinization through suitable farming practices such as organic fertilizers application, irrigation for leaching, and salt-tolerant crop planting is the key point for soil quality improvement. We obtained the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) of the study area by remote sensing technique, and found the high correlation between NDVI and soil quality indicator (SOM, TN and EC) and yield. The NDVI can help to study the soil conditions as a soil quality assessment indicator. More studies about the ap-plication of remote sensing technique on soil quality detecting are expected.
References
[1]
Karlen, D.L., Mausbach, M.J., Doran, J.W., Cline, R.G., Harris, R.F. and Schuman, G.E. (1997) Soil Quality: A Concept, Definition, and Framework for Evaluation. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 61, 4-10.
https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj1997.03615995006100010001x
[2]
Dose, H.L., Fortuna, A.M., Cihacek, L.J., Norland, J., DeSutter, T.M., Clay, D.E. and Bell, J. (2015) Biological Indicators Provide Short Term Soil Health Assessment during Sodic Soil Reclamation. Ecological Indicators, 58, 244-253.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2015.05.059
[3]
Marzaioli, R., D’Ascoli, R., De Pascale, R.A. and Rutigliano, F.A. (2010) Soil Quality in a Mediterranean Area of Southern Italy as Related to Different Land Use Types. Applied Soil Ecology, 44, 205-212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2009.12.007
[4]
Qi, Y., Darilek, J.L., Huang, B., Zhao, Y., Sun, W. and Gu, Z. (2009) Evaluating Soil Quality Indices in an Agricultural Region of Jiangsu Province, China. Geoderma, 149, 325-334. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2008.12.015
[5]
Swanepoel, P.A., du Preez, C.C., Botha, P.R., Snyman, H.A. and Habig, J. (2014) Soil Quality Characteristics of Kikuyu-Ryegrass Pastures in South Africa. Geoderma, 232, 589-599. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2014.06.018
[6]
Cardoso, E.J.B.N., Vasconcellos, R.L.F., Bini, D., Miyauchi, M.Y.H., dos Santos, C.A., Alves, P.R.L., de Paula, A.M., Nakatani, A.S., Pereira, J.D. and Nogueira, M.A.(2013) Soil Health: Looking for Suitable Indicators. What Should Be Considered to Assess the Effects of Use and Management on Soil Health? Scientia Agricola, 70, 274-289.
[7]
Leng, P., Li, Z.L., Duan, S.B., Gao, M.F. and Huo, H.Y. (2017) A Practical Approach for Deriving All-Weather Soil Moisture Content Using Combined Satellite and Meteorological Data. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 131, 40-51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2017.07.013
[8]
Xiao, Q., Tao, J.P., Xiao, Y. and Qian, F. (2017) Monitoring Vegetation Cover in Chongqing between 2001 and 2010 Using Remote Sensing Data. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 189, 493. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-6210-1
[9]
Liu, G.M., Lv, Z.Z., Yang, J.S., Li, K.Y. and Yu, S.P. (2015) Quality Evaluation of Soil in Land along Bohai Sea Coast by Principal Component Analysis and GIS. Journal of Drainage and Irrigation Machinery Engineering, 33, 67-72.
[10]
Lv, Z.Z., Liu, G.M., Yang, J.S., Liu, H.Q. and Li, J.B. (2015) Synthetic Evaluation of Soil Quality of the Coastal Saline Soil in Yellow River Delta Area. Agricultural Research in the Arid Areas, 33, 93-97.
[11]
Lu, R.K. (2000) Soil Analytical Methods of Agronomic Chemical. China Agricultural Science and Technology Press, Beijing.
[12]
Industry Standard of Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China (ISMAPRC) (1996) Classification of Type Regions and Fertility of Cultivated Land in China (NY/T 309-1993). Standards Press of China, Beijing.
[13]
Mondal, M.K., Bhuiyan, S.I. and Franco, D.T. (2001) Soil Salinity Reduction and Prediction of Salt Dynamics in the Coastal Ricelands of Bangladesh. Agricultural Water Management, 47, 9-23. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-3774(00)00098-6
[14]
Odeh, I.O.A. and Onus, A. (2008) Spatial Analysis of Soil Salinity and Soil Structural Stability in a Semiarid Region of New South Wales, Australia. Environmental Management, 42, 265-278. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-008-9100-z
[15]
Li, X.J. (2005) Spatial and Temporal Changes of Soil Quality and Sus-tainable Utilization Evaluation in the Yellow River Delta. Ph.D. Thesis, Dissertation, Shandong Agricultural University, Jinan.
[16]
Sun, Y.P. (2014) Spatial variability of soil salinity and organic based on GIS in Kenlicounty. Master Thesis, Ludong University, Yantai.
