An evaluation of soil retention potential as an important factor of water balance in the landscape

The ability of soil to retain water in its profile is one of the most important soil functions. It is expressed as the water storage capacity or retention capacity of the soil, and it is primarily affected by the physical properties of the soil. Given the fact that the direct measurement of hydrological data for the soil is very difficult in terms of capacity, statistically expressed pedotransfer functions (PTF) are currently used for the indirect estimation of hydrolimits. The data most commonly used for the PTF are easy-to-measure and usually readily available soil data on particle size, bulk density, organic carbon and morphometric parameters of the environment (e.g. slope of the relief, etc.). The listed pedotransfer functions are deficient for the complex evaluation of soil cover; given disagreements about the attributes, they cannot be directly used for the vector database of classified soil-ecological units in the Slovak Republic. Therefore, we have created a model of an algorithm from selected parameters compatible with the vector database of classified soil-ecological units, which also allows for the spatial distribution of the cumulative coefficient of water retention capacity (CWRC) for the soils of the SR. The results of this evaluation are presented using case studies of the areas of Levoča and Hriňová.445

An evaluation of soil retention potential as an important factor of water balance in the landscape

The ability of soil to retain water in its profile is one of the most important soil functions. It is expressed as the water storage capacity or retention capacity of the soil, and it is primarily affected by the physical properties of the soil. Given the fact that the direct measurement of hydrological data for the soil is very difficult in terms of capacity, statistically expressed pedotransfer functions (PTF) are currently used for the indirect estimation of hydrolimits. The data most commonly used for the PTF are easy-to-measure and usually readily available soil data on particle size, bulk density, organic carbon and morphometric parameters of the environment (e.g. slope of the relief, etc.). The listed pedotransfer functions are deficient for the complex evaluation of soil cover; given disagreements about the attributes, they cannot be directly used for the vector database of classified soil-ecological units in the Slovak Republic. Therefore, we have created a model of an algorithm from selected parameters compatible with the vector database of classified soil-ecological units, which also allows for the spatial distribution of the cumulative coefficient of water retention capacity (CWRC) for the soils of the SR. The results of this evaluation are presented using case studies of the areas of Levoča and Hriňová

Impact of Historical Agrarian Landforms on Soil Water Content Variability at Local Scale in West Carpathian Region, Slovakia

The historical agrarian landforms (AL) represent man-made features that alter the hydrological process on cultivated hillslopes. Soil water content (SWC) and its spatial and temporal variability represent an important state indicator for understanding of these processes. In order to assess the differences between individual AL in terms of SWC stability, continuous soil moisture measurements at five different monitoring localities characterized by a specific combination of AL and environmental factors were performed. Temporal SWC stability was evaluated using mean relative difference (MRD) and its standard deviation (SDRD). Differences in mean SWC and MRD values demonstrated the difference between saturated inner part of the AL and external parts such as terraced slopes and mounds, soil depths, and slope positions. In order to analyze the relationship between SWC and environmental variables, the methods of constrained ordination were applied. The most influential factors that regulate SWC variability during the periods of rain were identified as: stone content, sand fraction content, slope orientation, type of agrarian landform, and its orientation against the contour lines. Results also pointed to the fact that different factors predominate among individual localities and, therefore, SWC variability reflects the effect of combination of various environmental factors rather than effect of single parameter. Besides the improved understanding of SWC variability, our results also highlight the importance of AL in regulating the hydrological processes at historical agricultural landscape of the West Carpathian region