Spatial Variability of Soil Acidity and Lime Requirements for Potato Cultivation in the Huánuco Highlands

Kenyi Quispe, Sharon Mejía, Carlos Carbajal, Lidiana Alejandro, Patricia Verástegui and Richard Solórzano ()
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Kenyi Quispe: Dirección de Supervisión y Monitoreo en las Estaciones Experimentales Agrarias, Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), Av. La Molina 1981, Lima 15024, Peru
Sharon Mejía: Dirección de Supervisión y Monitoreo en las Estaciones Experimentales Agrarias, Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), Av. La Molina 1981, Lima 15024, Peru
Carlos Carbajal: Dirección de Supervisión y Monitoreo en las Estaciones Experimentales Agrarias, Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), Av. La Molina 1981, Lima 15024, Peru
Lidiana Alejandro: Dirección de Supervisión y Monitoreo en las Estaciones Experimentales Agrarias, Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), Av. La Molina 1981, Lima 15024, Peru
Patricia Verástegui: Dirección de Supervisión y Monitoreo en las Estaciones Experimentales Agrarias, Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), Av. La Molina 1981, Lima 15024, Peru
Richard Solórzano: Dirección de Supervisión y Monitoreo en las Estaciones Experimentales Agrarias, Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), Av. La Molina 1981, Lima 15024, Peru

Agriculture, 2024, vol. 14, issue 12, 1-18

Abstract: Soil acidity is a major limiting factor for potato production in Peru’s high Andean region. This study aims to predict the spatial variability of soil acidity as a fundamental tool for recommending site-specific liming treatments and to identify the physical–chemical characteristics most closely related to soil acidity. The soil samples were collected from five locations in the province of Pachitea, Huánuco. Descriptive statistics, principal component analysis (PCA), and Pearson correlation analysis were used to identify the soil properties contributing most to total variance and those most strongly correlated with soil acidity. The ordinary geostatistical kriging method evaluated the predictive accuracy for 23 soil properties and liming requirements over a 28,463 ha area, at a spatial resolution of 10 m. Results showed that the Plaza Punta and Buenos Aires locations had more degraded acidic soils, with frequencies between 55% and 100% above the general mean (30.94 ± 24.87%) and the critical threshold (25%) for potato cultivation. Variables such as exchangeable calcium percentage (ECP), Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , sand content, and organic matter strongly correlated with soil acidity, while exchangeable H + and ECP were the main contributors to the total variance. Geostatistical analysis revealed that Mg 2+ and Ca 2+ had the highest R 2 values (0.87 and 0.76, respectively), indicating a strong fit between observed and predicted values in the spatial analysis of soil acidity. It is concluded that the agricultural dolomite requirements in the localities of Plaza Punta and Buenos Aires exhibit high spatial predictability. Additionally, the analysis of diverse soil physicochemical properties is emphasized as critical for determining precise application rates.

Keywords: soil fertility; soil acidity; geostatistical interpolation; spatial analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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