Physical Soil Properties changes of Saraburi Soil Series under Rice Cultivation

Abstract

Land preparations and method of rice painting in three consecutive years of wet and dry season were established at irrigated area of Chainat Rice Research Station in 2000-2003. The study was to determine the changes some physical soil properties of Saraburi soil series. The treatments namely no-tillage with directed seed rice: tillage with directed seed rice and tillage with transplanting rice were arranged in a randomized complete block design in both wet and dry seasons. The results indicated that some physical soil properties namely soil bulk density, soil porosity, hydraulic conductivity and air capacity of the soil under rice cultivation for three years were not considerably changed in consecutive seasons. However, the porosity of the on tillage plots were slightly decreased; whereas, those of tillage plots were much considerably decreased in the third year experiment. Therefore, if this trial was set up longer than three years, soil porosity in no tillage plots would rather be probably increased. Subsequently, the air capacity of no tillage plots were increased. In three years of rice cultivation, rice growing under no tillage with directed seed rice seemed to increase in particularly of the third year of the dry season where the yield was not significantly differences comparing to tillage with directed seed rice. By contrast, the rice yield of the wet season was still significant different from till to no-till plots.