INTRODUCTION:

Soils quality depends upon the variation in climate. The type of soil depend on the humus type, and size of the grains of the rock, which creates clay soil, muddy soil, sand etc. The benefits offered by the soil promotes ecosystem by promoting plant growth, regulating speed, water purity, recycling nutrients using dead animals, plants as substrates, helps in changing the atmosphere, place for animals, insects, microbes to live. Soil fertility is of utmost important in enriching the growth of the plant by supplying NPK, minerals, soil organic matter, microbes supporting plant growth, topsoil containing rich in nutrients. The soil fertility of the soil might be rich or poor as it depends upon the soil conservation practices. The type of irrigation also plays a major role in maintaining soil fertility. Soil formation is a very long process and is also a non- renewable resource. Soil contains carbon twice in amount present in the atmosphere, thrice in amount present in vegetation. Hence, it is essential to analyze and study the soil nutrients as it supports the growth of plant. So, the present work was designed to characterize soil nutrients collected from Panuchakuli village, Kanyakumari district.

Received on 14.05.2015 Modified on 29.05.2015

Research J. Pharm. and Tech. 8(7): July, 2015; Page 857-859

DOI: 10.5958/0974-360X.2015.00140.7

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Soil sample collection

The soil samples were collected at a depth of 15cm from Panuchakuli village, Kanyakumari District, Kanyakumari, was selected for the present study. The collected soil samples were removed and freed from debris, stones and then sieved. The sieved sample (500gm) was packed and sealed in an airtight plastic cover and sent for nutrient analysis.

Analysis of soil nutrients

The Physio-chemical properties of soil were determined by following an alternative analytical indigenous technology developed by MCRC, IIT (M).

Microbial analysis

Colony forming units measures the viable bacterial, fungal cells and actinomycets. Microbiological analysis was performed by taking 1gm of the soil sample in 10ml of sterile distilled water. 1ml of soil suspension was diluted serially and used for the analysis of bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes. Nutrient agar, Potato dextrose agar, Starch casein agar was used for the isolation of bacteria, fungi, actinomycets, respectively. The soil suspension prepared was shaken at RT using orbital shaker at 200 rpm for 1hr. 200µl of soil suspension was pipette and spread over agar plates (pH7). A series of dilution of suspension from 10^-3 to 10^-6 were used for plating. All the plates were incubated for a period of 1-2 weeks. The microbes grown were streaked further and incubated for 1 week. Colony forming units per gram of soil was determined by dividing the number of colonies by the dilution factor.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION:

Table.1 depicts the results of soil samples collected at Panuchakuli village, Kanyakumari District.

Table. 1. Soil Nutrient analysis

S.No	Nutrients	Results
1.	pH	7.73
2.	EC	0.17
3.	Organic Carbon (%)	1.22
4.	Nitrogen (Kg/acre)	133.55
5.	Phosphorus (Kg/acre)	14.98
6.	Potassium (Kg/acre)	117.66
7.	Calcium (mg/kg)	510.88
8.	Magnesium (mg/kg)	175.92
9.	Sodium (mg/kg)	127.62
10.	Iron (mg/kg)	13.25
11.	Manganese (mg/kg)	10.69
12.	Copper (mg/kg)	2.45
13.	Zinc ( mg/kg)	1.28
14.	Boron (mg/kg)	-
15.	Sulfate (mg/kg)	14.83
16.	Humus (mg/kg)	103.02
	Total minerals (kg/acre)	266.19

Table.1. Depicts the results of soil nutrient analysis. The pH observed was 7.73. The observed electrolytic conductance was 0.17. The organic carbon content was 1.22%. The nitrogen content was 133.55 kg/acre. The phosphorus content was 14.98kg/acre. The potassium content was 117.66kg/acre. The calcium, magnesium, sodium content found was 510.88mg/kg, 175.92mg/kg, 127.62mg/kg. The iron content was found to be 13.25mg/kg. The manganese, copper content was 10.69mg/kg, 2.45mg/kg. The sulfate content was 14.83mg/kg. The humus content of the soil was 103.02mg/kg. There was no boron observed in the soil. On the whole, the total mineral content of the soil calculated was 266.19kg/acre. When compared to normal soil nutrients, the nitrogen, potassium content observed was medium, while the phosphorous was found to be low. The calcium, iron, zinc, copper, manganese content was high when compared to normal soil nutrient. Similar result was reported by Krishnaveni et.al for Calcium^1,2,3, pH^1,4,Organic carbon², Humus content²,Iron³, Sodium⁵,Total minerals^6,9, Nitrogen⁷, Electrolyic conductance⁸, Phosphorus¹⁰, Magnesium¹⁰.

Table-2 Normal Nutrient Values

Nutrient	Low	Medium	High
N(Kg/acre)	<113	113-182	>182
P(Kg/acre)	<18	18-36	>36
K(Kg/acre)	<60	60-138	>138
OC (%)	<0.75	0.75-1.5	>1.5
Mg ( mg/kg)	<10	10-15	>15
HA (Kg/Acre)	<18	18-31	>31
Iron ( mg/kg)	<6	6-8	>8
Mn ( mg/kg)	<1	1.2-2.5	>2.5
Cu( mg/kg)	<0.3	0.3-1	>1
Zn( mg/kg)	<0.5	0.5-1	>1
Sulphur( mg/kg)	0-10	10-15	>15
Ca ( mg/kg)	<300 (Deficient)	>300 (Sufficient)	-
Boron (mg/kg)	<0.5 (Deficient)	>0.5 (Sufficient)	-
Molybdenum (mg/kg)	<0.2 (Deficient)	>0.2 (Sufficient)	-

Microbiological analysis

The results of microbiological analysis are shown in Table.3.

Table.3. Microbiological analysis

S.No	Microbes tested	CFU/gm
1.	Bacteria	30x10⁶
2.	Fungi	15x10⁴
3.	Actinomycetes	02x10³

Colony forming units per gram of soil depicts the density of microbes isolated from the soil. The bacteria was found to be higher in the soil compared to fungi and the soil contains lower amount of actinomycets. Bacteria is the most abundant group of micro-organism in the soil and fungi in the soil is opportunistic i.e zymogenic and gets activated when other environmental factors are conducive, usually it will be present as free living organism or along with mycorrhiza of plant roots. The presence of bacteria, fungi shows species richness in the soil.

CONCLUSION:

Soil, a mixture of minerals, gases, liquids, microbes, organic matter which is essential for the growth of the plant. The health of the soil is a key factor in the maintenance of food security. The soil nutrient gets exchanged between organic matter, water, soil and these forms a fundamental components of soil fertility. The obtained results of the present study shows, that the organic carbon, minerals, microbes was moderate in amount so as to maintain soil water holding capacity, fertility.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

The author wishes her thanks to Shri AMM Murugappa Chettiar Research centre, Taramani, Chennai, for their help in analyzing samples. The author would like to express her gratitude to her dedicated teachers.

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