Ferenc Máté

Soil Attribute Parameterization for Plant‐Specific Evaluation of Cropland Productivity in Hungary

Abstract The potential of croplands is determined by annual and seasonal variations in the capacity of the soil to supply water and nutrients. This research was aimed at, with use of the available pedological, topographical, and meteorological data, to describe how yield formation is influenced by the major soil attributes determining fertility and to construct a land evaluation model. The aim was also to describe how fertilization influences the fertility of various soils. For this purpose, data on the soil, agrotechnology, and yield of >80,000 fields, representing approximately 4 million ha of arable land, were statistically analyzed over a 5‐yr period (1985–1989). As part of this work, differences between the most common soil types were evaluated, as manifested in the yield data of wheat. This evaluation was backed up by an analysis of the modifying effects of soil texture, lime status, and nitrogen fertilization. The database of a smaller sample area was used to study the fertility of various soil types for various crops, and calculations were made to quantify the fertilizer effect and the effects of soil characteristics. Results confirm that it is worthwhile performing fertility classification based on soil groupings at higher taxonomic levels. Differences in the fertility of soils with more favorable properties within the soil taxonomic units even out at the highest fertilizer rates, whereas soils with poorer properties, treated with lower rates of fertilizer, exhibit far greater differences in fertility. The best way to achieve a complex quantification of the effect of attributes which influence productivity seems to be by differentiating between soil types, taking into consideration the major physical and chemical characteristics of the particular soil units.

Soil fertility assessment in a case study in Hungary

Introduction The wild plants accommodate to the soil conditions themselves but the plants which are produced by us are grown on different soil types and soil conditions. So it is important to know which soil type can grow arable crops with the best success. (Fekete, 1958) The specific land use allows that the plant production should be profitable in the way of sustainability of fertility on croplands. (Birkas, 2001) Soils have been described for many years in terms of the proportions of particles of different sizes that they contain. This basis of characterization soils developed because particle size is an obvious characteristic related to soil behavior and plant response. (Black, 1967) The main goal of this study was to evaluate crop lands on an objective basis and to create land use classes with the help of the evaluated values. Land evaluation helps the correct planning of agronomic land use very much. This study introduces how you can evaluate the soil fertility through the potential agronomic production. The method determines the production potential of agricultural lands in a quantitative way.

Climate sensitivity of soil water regime of different Hungarian Chernozem soil subtypes

In this study the possible effects of two predicted climate change scenarios on soil water regime of Hungarian Calcic Chernozem soils has been investigated. Soil profiles classified as Calcic Chernozem — in total 49 — were selected from the MARTHA soil physical database that incorporates soil data at national scale. These profiles were subdivided into three groups (sandy loam, loam and clayey loam) in accordance with their mechanical composition. Soil water retention curves were scaled separately for each of the three textural groups, using similar media scaling in order to represent the variability of soil hydrophysical data with one parameter, the scaling factor (SF). Reference soil profiles were chosen according to the cumulative distribution function of the scaling factor, six for each textural group. Daily downscaled meteorological data from A2 and B2 climate scenarios of the Hadley Centre (2070–2100) and data from a reference period (RF, 1961–1990) were used in this study to characterize different climatic situations. Nine representative years were selected in case of all the three scenarios, using the cumulative probability function of the annual precipitation sum. Scenario analyses were performed, validating the SWAP soil water balance simulation model for the 18 reference soil profiles and 27 representative years in order to evaluate the expected changes in soil water regime under different from the present (RF) climatic conditions (A2 and B2 scenarios). Our results show that the scaling factor could be used as a climate sensitivity indicator of soil water regime. The large climate sensitivity of the majority of Chernozem soil subtypes water regime has been proven.

Development of an Online Soil Valuation Database

There is a constant need for the rational evaluation of every individual piece of land. To provide continuously upgraded, precise technical and economic assessment, an online digital geographic information system was developed. At the roots of the system are cadastral maps from the land registry and soil maps at the scale of 1:10,000. The basis of the technical land bonitation* is the D‐e‐Meter system, which is used not only for croplands but also for grasslands and forests. * As defined by FAO (2003), page 9, “soil bonitation is the comparative assessment of the land quality and productivity with a representative level of agricultural activity. Bonitation involves an analysis of the soil properties, both natural and human‐induced, that determine its crop carrying capacity, both its natural productive capacity and that obtained through agricultural activities.” The algorithm for the calculation of the land quality index, which is the core of the D‐e‐Meter system, was developed with a database of 60,000 plots that were monitored during a 5‐year period. Based on cultivation field records and a comprehensive system of economic valuation, the indicator “total standard gross margin” was calculated and finally a land value index in euro/ha was provided.