Comparing Surface Carbon Concentrations And Certain Parameters Of The Soils On Which Medicinal And Aromatic Plants Grow

Abstract

Organic carbon is one of the common indicators used in studies on global climate change for major problems of land degradation, desertification and biodiversity decrease. Carbon as one of the absolute necessary element is indispensable for survival of all living beings. Soils are carbon sources for the land as well as the atmosphere. For that reason, surface carbon amounts and certain parameters were analyzed in this study for the soils in which medicinal and aromatic plants are grown. In this study, physical and chemical analyses were carried out in disturbed soil samples which were taken out at two different depths from totally 60 points in areas with three different medicinal and aromatic plants (Rosmarinus officinalis, Salvia officinalis, Origanum onites) found in Adiyaman-Kahta district. The soils in the study area were determined to have no drainage problem, with clay and clay-loam texture (37.27%), low alkali pH (7.67), to be saline-alkaline (EC: 0.31 dS m(-1)), to have very low calcareous content (1.11%) and medium-level organic matter (2.13%). In terms of nutritional elements, it was determined that there were very low nitrogen (N) (0.07%), some phosphorus (P) (4.28 kg da(-1)) and zinc (Zn) (0.54 ppm), high potassium (K) (157.39 kg da(-1)) and iron (Fe) (5.31 ppm), and adequate amount of copper (Cu) (2.13 ppm) and manganese (Mn) (5.98 ppm). Organic carbon concentration of the soils was between 2.42 and 5.05 kg m(-2), and determined to be 3.76 kg C m(-2) as mean. Inorganic carbon concentrations varied between 2.75 and 5.36 kg m(-2), and determined to be 4.08 kg m(-2) on mean. In this case, the highest organic and inorganic carbon concentrations in the study area were found to be in areas where sage (Salvia officinalis) plant grew.