ASSESSMENT OF THE PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF SOILS IN WARWADE VILLAGE, DUTSE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, JIGAWA STATE, NIGERIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10/3303/jees.2026.0301/032Keywords:
Physicochemical properties, Rice farm, Soil, Warwade villageAbstract
Agricultural productivity depends largely on the physical and chemical properties of soil, which influence nutrient availability, water retention, root development, and crop productivity. This study assessed the physical and chemical properties of soil in Warwade Village, located in Dutse Local Government Area of Jigawa State, Nigeria. Four cultivated rice farms (Farm 1–Farm 4) were selected for the study. Composite soil samples were collected from four cultivated rice farms at depths of 0- 20 cm and 20- 40 cm using a geographical positioning system to record coordinates, and Locus Map (Version 4.29, Asamm Software) was used to delineate the map. Data were analysed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) at the 5% significance level. The soil texture was characterized by sandy loam to loamy sand. Bulk density ranged from 1.61 to 1.65 Mg m⁻³ across the four farms, with the highest value recorded in Farm 3 (1.65 Mg m⁻³). Soil pH ranged from moderately acidic in Farms 1 and 2 (5.85–6.15) to slightly acidic (5.55- 5.60) in Farms 3 and 4. Organic carbon was highest in Farm 4 (0.80 g/kg) and showed significant variation from the values in the other farms. Exchangeable calcium was highest in Farm 4 and lowest in Farm 2, with significant differences observed. Electrical conductivity (0.02–0.16 dS m⁻¹), organic carbon (0.23–0.80 g kg⁻¹), total nitrogen (0.09–0.35 g kg⁻¹), available phosphorus (9.64–11.21 mg kg⁻¹), exchangeable sodium (0.03–0.07cmol (+) kg⁻¹) and exchangeable acidity (0.30–0.90 cmol(+) kg⁻¹) showing no significant differences (P > 0.05) and were generally low among the four farms. This suggests that management of soil fertility is required to improve soil productivity and sustain agricultural production in Warwade.
References
Abdulkadir, A., Mohammed, I., & Daudu, C. K. (2021). Organic carbon in tropical soils: Current trends and potential for carbon sequestration in Nigerian cropping systems. In Handbook of Climate Change Management: Research, Leadership, Transformation (pp. 1–23). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
Abdulraheem, M. I., Naqvi, S. M. Z. A., Li, L., Ahmed, S., Wei, W., Su, R., & Hu, J. (2022). Soil fertility management: issues and challenges in tropical areas of Nigeria. Ecosystem services: types, management and benefits, 313–26.
Anderson, J. M., & Ingram, J. S. I. (1993). A handbook of methods. CAB International, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, 221, 62–65.
Bationo, A., Ngaradoum, D., Youl, S., Lompo, F., & Fening, J. O. (Eds.). (2018). Improving the Profitability, Sustainability and Efficiency of Nutrients Through Site Specific Fertilizer Recommendations in West Africa Agro-Ecosystems: Volume 1 (Vol. 1). Springer.
Bhatt, M. K., Labanya, R., & Joshi, H. C. (2019). Influence of long-term chemical fertilizers and organic manures on soil fertility-A review. Universal Journal of Agricultural Research, 7(5), 177–188.
Blake, G.R., Hartge, K.H (1986). Bulk density in methods of Soil Analysis.Klute A. (Ed). Part 1. 2nd. Agron. 9. ASA and SSA, Madison, WI. P, 363-375
Bortoluzzi, E. C., Tessier, D., Rheinheimer, D. S., & Julien, J. L. (2006). The cation exchange capacity of a sandy soil in southern Brazil: An estimation of permanent and pH‐dependent charges. European Journal of Soil Science, 57(3), 356–364.
Bremner, J. & C.S. Mulvaney (1982). Nitrogen-Total. In R. Page, A. Miller and D.R Keeney (eds). Methods of Soil Science Analysis. Part 2 92nd ed). American Society of Agronomy and Soil Science Society of America. Madison. Wisconsin. Pp. 595-624
Chapman, H.D. (1965). Determination of Cation Exchange Capacity. Methods of soil analysis—Black, C.A. (ed.) Agronomy Monograph.9:891-900.
Costa, A. C. S. D., Souza, I. G. D., Canton, L. C., Gil, L. G., & Figueiredo, R. (2020). Contribution of the chemical and mineralogical properties of sandy-loam tropical soils to the cation exchange capacity. Revista Brasileira de Ciência do Solo, 44, e0200019.
Diop, M., Chirinda, N., Beniaich, A., El Gharous, M., & El Mejahed, K. (2022). Soil and water conservation in Africa: State of play and potential role in tackling soil degradation and building soil health in agricultural lands. Sustainability, 14(20), 13425.
Federal Fertilizer Department (2012). Fertilizer use and management practices for crop production in Nigeria (4th edition). Chude V.O et al. (eds) Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Abuja, Nigeria 1SSN 115-554X
Feng, J., He, K., Zhang, Q., Han, M., & Zhu, B. (2022). Changes in plant inputs alter soil carbon and microbial communities in forest ecosystems. Global Change Biology, 28(10), 3426-3440.
Gee, G. W., Bauder, J. W., & Klute, A. (1986). Particle-size analysis. Methods of soil analysis. Part 1. Physical and mineralogical methods, 383–411.
Hazelton, P., & Murphy, B. (2025). Interpreting soil test results: What do all the numbers mean? CSIRO Publishing.
Lahmar, R., Bationo, B. A., Lamso, N. D., Guéro, Y., & Tittonell, P. (2012). Tailoring conservation agriculture technologies to West Africa semi-arid zones: building on traditional local practices for soil restoration. Field Crops Research, 132, 158–167.
Lal, R. (2020). Soil organic matter content and crop yield—Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 75(2), 27A-32A.
Latif, A., & Abbas, A. (2025). Soil management practices improve physical properties of soil, movement of water within the soil and yield of crops: A review—Journal of Plant Production and Sustainability, 1(2).
Liu, L., Ouyang, Z., Hu, C., & Li, J. (2024). Quantifying direct CO2 emissions from organic manure fertilizer and maize residual roots using 13C labeling technique: A field study. Science of the Total Environment, 906, 167603.
Macaulay, B. (2014). Land degradation in Northern Nigeria: The impacts and implications of human-related and climatic factors—African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology.
Mandal, A., Sarkar, B., Mandal, S., Vithanage, M., Patra, A. K., & Manna, M. C. (2020). Impact of agrochemicals on soil health. In Agrochemicals detection, treatment and remediation (pp. 161–187). Butterworth-Heinemann.
Mandal, N., Dwivedi, B. S., Datta, S. P., Meena, M. C., & Tomar, R. K. (2019). Soil hydrophysical properties under different nutrient management practices, their relationship with soil organic carbon fractions and crop yield under pigeonpea-wheat sequence. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 42(4), 384–400.
Marschner, H. (Ed.). (2011). Marschner’s mineral nutrition of higher plants. Academic Press.
McGuire, S. (2015). FAO, IFAD, and WFP. The state of food insecurity in the world 2015: meeting the 2015 international hunger targets: taking stock of uneven progress. Rome: FAO, 2015. Advances in Nutrition, 6(5), 623–624.
Nguemezi, C., Tematio, P., Yemefack, M., Tsozue, D., & Silatsa, T. B. F. (2020). Soil quality and soil fertility status in major soil groups at the Tombel area, South-West Cameroon. Heliyon, 6(2).
Oritsejafor, F. O., Ogunkanmi, L., Aliku, O., & Aiyelari, E. A. (2022). Bulk density: An index for measuring critical soil compaction levels for groundnut cultivation. Open Agriculture, 7(1), 79–92.
Priori, S., Pellegrini, S., Vignozzi, N., & Costantini, E. A. (2020). Soil physical-hydrological degradation in the root-zone of tree crops: Problems and solutions. Agronomy, 11(1), 68.
Raji, B. A., Ahmed, B., Danjuma, S., Eniolorunda, N. B., & Usman, Y. (2023). Genesis, Distribution and Economic Impact of Dune Formations in Nigeria. In Sand Dunes of the Northern Hemisphere: Distribution, Formation, Migration and Management (pp. 48–55). CRC Press.
SANI, S., MUSA, A., & ABDULKADIR, A. (2026). Evaluation of soil physical properties under different land uses in semi-arid Nigeria. Moroccan Journal of Agricultural Sciences• e-ISSN 2550-553X.
Sani, S., Aliyu, A., & Muhammad, M. (2025). Spatial variability and mapping of soil structural stability: the interplay of texture and organic matter at Jibia Irrigation Project, Semi-Arid Zone of Nigeria. Sahel Journal of Life Sciences FUDMA, 3(3), 55–67.
Shah, F., & Wu, W. (2019). Soil and crop management strategies to ensure higher crop productivity within sustainable environments: Sustainability, 11(5), 1485.
Soudi, B., Bouabid, R., & Badraoui, M. (2020). The storage of organic carbon in dryland soils of Africa: Constraints and opportunities. In Soil and Fertilizers (pp. 103–129). CRC Press.
Sufiyanu, S. A. N. I., & Abdullahi, M. U. S. A. (2026). Evaluation of soil physical properties under different land uses in semi-arid Nigeria. Moroccan Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 7(1), 1–7.
Trigunasih, N. M., Narka, I. W., & Saifulloh, M. (2023). Measurement of soil chemical properties for mapping soil fertility status. International Journal of Design & Nature and Ecodynamics, 18(6), 1381–1390.
Umar, G., Magaji, M. J., & Buji, I. B. (2023). Comparative analysis of some soil properties in different land use of Auyo Local Government Area, Jigawa, North West, Nigeria. Journal of Arid Zone Economy, 2(1), 47–57.
Walkley, A., & Black, C (1934). An examination of the Degtjaref method for determining soil organic matter and modifying the chronic acid method. Soil Science 37: 29–38.
Yeshaneh, G. T. (2015). Effect of slope position on soil physico-chemical properties with different management practices in smallholder cultivated farms of Abuhoy Gara Catchment, Gidan District, North Wollo. Am J Environ Protect, 3(5), 174–179.
