Soil Properties under Miang Tea Garden Coffee Plantation and Remnant Forest at Pa Miang Village, Chae Son Sub-District, Mueang Pan District, Lampang Province

Abstract

The study of soil properties in Ban Pa Miang, Chae Son Subdistrict, Mueang Pan District, Lampang Province aimed to study the physical and chemical properties of soil in the Miang tea plantation, Coffee plantation and Remnant Forest (control), and to study the relationship of soil factors affecting the growth of Miang and coffee. Data were collected from the surface soil (0-5 cm) and sub-surface soil (20-25 cm). The study plots were set up using the Stratified Random Sampling method with a size of 10 x 10 m, 5 plots per area, totaling 15 plots, and the relationship of soil factors was analyzed using the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) method. The results of the study found that the soil hardness of the Miang tea plantation in the surface soil and sub-surface soil were the hardest, resulting in less moisture and a very acidic pH. In the Coffee plantation area, the surface soil contained the highest amount of nutrients (P, Na, Ca, and Mg), and the Remnant Forest contained more organic matter than the Miang tea plantation and Coffee plantation due to the long-term decomposition of plant and animal remains. The sub-surface contained sand, silt, and clay, which were not much different from the surface soil. When analyzing the relationship between soil factors, it was found that different land uses affected the amount of nutrients and physical soil properties, including the fertility of soil in each area, depending on the parent soil. The management of the Miang tea plantation and coffee plantation areas is a way of using land that can create jobs for farmers in the area.  It also has ecological components that are a form of agroforestry that is suitable for soil, water, and forest conservation, allowing people to live together with the forest sustainably.