Impacts of land use types on soil physicochemical properties in the North-Central Highlands of Ethiopia

Introduction: Proper soil management is essential for sustaining soil fertility and optimizing agricultural productivity. Understanding how soils respond to different land use practices is key to ensuring long-term land sustainability. Objective: This study evaluates the effects of various land use types on soil physicochemical properties in the North-Central Highlands of Ethiopia, establishing a baseline for future research and sustainable land management. Method: This study examined the impact of different land uses on soil fertility and quality by analyzing 108 composite soil samples across four land use types, three depths, and three slope positions, with triplicate sampling for accuracy. Key physicochemical properties were analyzed to assess soil physicochemical property and quality variations. Results: The study showed that cultivated land had significantly lower soil fertility than natural forestland, with lower levels of organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorous, exchangeable bases, and base saturation. Topsoil had a better nutrient content compared to subsoil, with higher levels of organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, and micronutrients. Moreover, soils on lower slopes had better chemical properties than those on upper slopes, with higher pH, exchangeable bases, and cation exchange capacity occurring at lower slopes. Conversion of natural forest to cropland led to significant (p < 0.05) declines in organic matter, total nitrogen, and available phosphorus, highlighting severe soil degradation risks. These findings underscore the urgent need for improved land management practices and policy interventions to mitigate soil fertility loss. Conclusions: These findings will offer valuable information for policy makers, researchers and farmers to make well-informed decisions regarding land use planning and soil conservation strategies in the region. Further research is recommended to assess land use change impacts across various scales, from small sub-watersheds to regional and national levels, to support balanced agricultural development and ecosystem conservation.