SLM525 - Lecture - 1
SLM525 - Lecture - 1
COURSE OUTLINE:
Field survey
Principles of land use planning and management for agricultural and non-
agricultural projects
Field practical
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INTRODUCTION
Fundamental concepts in pedology (read SLM513 notes)
1. Purpose of the survey (What do you intend to do/ want to do with the soil survey report?).
There are two (2) types of surveys: special purpose and general-purpose surveys.
a. General purpose soil survey is one that is done mainly to add to the already existing
inventory of soil information. This commonly found in the national survey of each
country, e.g., the USDA, FMARD. The information may not be needed at the time of
survey but such a survey is done for record purpose. Such survey usually employs many
differentiating properties so that it may be found useful for several purposes that may
arise in the future.
b. Special purpose soil survey is done for specific purpose in mind, e.g., survey for
irrigation or survey for citrus plantation. In such survey, the properties (differentiating
characteristics) of the land which is important for the purpose are emphasized. Special
purpose surveys are usually done at large scale or semi-detailed. This has to be so
because the area covered are smaller and also the intensity of observation also need to be
higher.
2. Regularity of observation: Three kinds of surveys have been distinguished, namely, free
survey, rigid grid and flexible grid.
a. Free survey, there is no rigid pattern of observation. The surveyor uses the field features
such as change in vegetation, topography, slope and even change in sound to movement
to observe soil and to locate soil boundaries. Usually there is a lot of remote sensing
methodology involved in free survey. And in most modern soil survey involving 5000 ha
and above, this is usually the type of survey methodology adopted. The advantage is that,
it is cheaper because there is fewer number of observation points. However, because it
depends largely on the experience of the surveyor, it can be very inaccurate with an
amateur, since boundary placement is more difficult.
b. Rigid grid survey, examinations of the soil are done at regular and pre-determined
interval. It is normally used when detailed information is required, e.g., mapping the soil
of a research station or mapping for irrigation. Usually, the points of observation are at
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the intersection of the two regularly placed vertical and horizontal lines. It has an
advantage in thickly forested area where visibility of the terrain is poor. It is usually not
used or recommended in large areas as it is expensive and the accuracy may not deserve
the extra cost. It is the best method of survey for amateurs.
c. Flexible grid survey method is a compromise between the free and rigid grid methods
of survey. In this system of survey, the number of observations is fixed but the location of
the observation points is not predetermined and can be fixed at will. Based on the scale of
mapping, there are seven kinds of surveys, namely: compilation, integrated survey,
exploratory survey, reconnaissance survey, semi-detailed survey, detailed survey and
intensive survey.
a. Compilation: These are soil maps produced by abstraction from other soil surveys. And
where they exist, they are filled by inferences. The scale is usually at 1: 100,000 or
smaller. Many national soil maps of many countries are produced in this way.
b. Integrated survey: This is also known as land system survey. It is based on mapping the
total physical environment and in fact land forms are mapping unit. Soils are an
important but usually not a defining property of the mapping unit. The scale is 1: 250,000
or smaller.
c. Exploratory survey: Exploratory surveys are not survey proper. They are usually rapid
road traverse made to provide modicum of information about the area that are otherwise
unknown. Scale of exploratory survey varies from 1: 2,000,000 to 1,500,000.
d. Reconnaissance survey: These are mostly based on remote sensing especially Area
Photo Imagery (API). They are the smallest scale of survey where the whole area is still
covered. The scale is usually 1:250,000 although smaller scales have been used.
f. Detailed survey: Detailed surveys are executed through field examination with pre-
determined numbers of observation points and or spacing. These kinds of surveys are
usually employed for small area and for special purposes. Scale of observation varies
between 1: 10,000 and 1: 25,000. Mapping unit are usually soil series.
g. Intensive survey: Intensive survey rigid grid approach, i.e., number of observation and
spacing of observation are pre-determined. Mapping units are soil series and phase of soil
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series. Scale of mapping varies from 1: 1,000 to 1: 10,000 or even larger. They are
usually experimental station surveys.
In the physical environment, the aspects usually discussed are the location and extent, the
climate, regional and local relief and topography, geology of the parent materials, vegetation and
land use pattern (including mining and agriculture).
Location: The location is given in longitude and latitude or the Eastings and Northings (when
using GPS). The site is also indicated by small area on a large map where the area of the project
is shaded. The approximate area of the land is also given in hectares.
Climate: Full information is given on the climatic condition of the area. Data on Rainfall,
temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and direction are collected and presented either as
tables or as graphs.
Relief or topography: Because of the influence of relief on soil formation, the information on it
is very vital. Relief/topography also affects decision on land uses even after survey. For example,
the topography or relief of a land can be an important factor in determining the suitability of a
land for arable cropping, irrigation agriculture or pastoral agriculture.
Geology or parent material: Knowledge of the parent rock from which the soil is formed is
necessary. The difference between geology and parent material become important where the
transported material and the geology are different from each other.
Vegetation
Experience has shown that there is a close association between vegetation and kind of soils.
Therefore, information on the vegetation of the project area is important. It is therefore necessary
to mention the type, subtype and identification of vegetation. For example, the land use and
vegetation may be described as grassland with shrub and abundant vegetation cover. Woody
species, broad leaves and grasses dominate the vegetation. The woody species occupy about 60
% of the total ground surface. The predominant woody species are Daniellia oliverii, Chloris
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excelsa, Anogysus leocarpus, Terminalia glaucesccens; while the dominant broad leaf is
Chromolaena odorata.
Land Use
The kind and pattern of land use in the project area must be fully discussed. This includes the
type of crop cultivated, irrigation practices, area covered, mining activities, constructions if any,
and some peculiar characteristics of farming systems e.g., land conservation practices.
The social economic environment of the project area also needs to be mentioned. The presence
or absence of market and the marketing potentials of the available markets should be described.
Here the method used in carrying out the soil survey is spelt out
The soils
This is the main part of the report. In it a full account of the soils, their properties and
distribution over the landscape studied are given. Specifically, the aspect of the soils to be
mentioned includes:
(1) Soil classification: The soil classification systems used are discussed and the criteria of
classification are well spelt out. In addition, the categorical level at which the classification
was stopped should be mentioned. Any problem or problems encountered should be
mentioned here and a summary should be given. This may include both the classification and
mapping.
(2) Description of the mapping units: The mapping units are described fully in terms of their
extent and major soil properties. Also, for each mapping unit, the representative profile class
is given and the extent of coverage (purity). The other profile classes mapped as inclusions in
the mapping unit must also be indicated and the extent mentioned.
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Text figures
Here the legend of the soil map and land evaluation map are presented. Each map must have its
own legend and this must correlate with the map.
Appendix
Various information from which the report has been summarized but which are too voluminous
to be included in the main report are presented here. The data presented here include data on
profile description and analyzed data.