Potentials of coconut (Cocos nucifera) based agroforestry system in soil quality management in coastal Odisha

Abstract

This paper presents a study carried out in Puri district of Odisha during June 2015 – May 2016 to determine the soil quality in coconut based agroforestry system in 15 different sizes (0.1 to 1.5 acre) of land holdings. The chosen coconut based agroforestry systems were visited in three cropping seasons such as kharif, rabi and summer and the observations on floral composition, height of plants, number of trees, number of livestock animals and birds, number of common plant species, different seasonal crops were recorded. The soil chemical analysis were carried out to assess the organic carbon, N, P and K content along with the pH range. There are four different strata in which different perennial species were associated with coconut. The coconut based agroforestry systems of various sizes are playing important role for the household and the soil quality management which include productive role, protective and ameliorative role, recreational and educational role as well as developmental role giving various kinds of tangible and intangible benefits. The coconut based agroforestry system of size 0.8 acre was found to be best among the holding sizes studied with regard to various functions including soil health management in coastal Odisha.