Journal of Arid Environments (2003) 54: 495–503

doi:10.1006/jare.2002.1073

Spatial variability of exchangeable sodium, electrical

conductivity, soil pH and boron content in salt- and
sodium-affected areas of the Igdir plain (Turkey)

Osman Ardahanlioglu%, Taskin Oztasw*, Salih Evren%, Hasbi Yilmaz%

& Zeynep N. Yildirim%
%
Rural Services Research Institute, Erzurum, Turkey
w
Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ataturk University,
25240, Erzurum, Turkey

(Received 17 July 2002)

The objective of this study is to assess spatial distribution patterns of
exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP), electrical conductivity (EC), soil pH
and boron content (B) of salt-and sodium-affected soils in the Igdir plain.
The research area, 1000 m
1000 m in size, was divided into 100 m
100 m
grid squares. Soil samples from three different depths (0–30; 30–60;
60–90 cm) were collected at each grid intersection. Experimental semivar-
iograms were developed to determine the spatial dependence of soil
properties, and block kriging analysis was performed to interpolate properties
at unsampled locations. Semivariance analyses demonstrated that there were
similarities in the patterns of spatial variability of ESP, EC and B content of
the soils. Distribution maps produced from kriging values showed that the
vertical distribution patterns of measured soil properties, except for pH, were
not much different. However, there were some differences in the horizontal
distribution patterns of the soil properties studied.
# 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd.

Keywords: spatial variability; geostatistics; saline and sodic soils

Introduction

The suitability of soil for plant growth depends heavily on its structural properties and
the concentration of the soil solution. Soils in arid and semi-arid regions are often
characterized by high salt and sodium contents, which can affect aggregation and soil
structure. The colloidal system of the soil tends to disperse when the sodium content
on exchangeable sites increases. Excessive amounts of salts cause high osmotic
pressure that adversely affects water uptake by plants. In general, high soil pH is
associated with sodium, and boron concentrations reach high levels in alkaline soils.
Evaluating the spatial variability of basic soil properties in saline and sodic soils, and
mapping spatial distribution patterns of these soil properties helps to make effective
site-specific management decisions.
*
Corresponding author.

0140-1963/03/030495 + 09 $30.00/0 # 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd.

496 O. ARDAHANLIOGLU

Geostatistical methods have been applied successfully in studies of soil spatial

variability. In recent years, a wide variety of soil morphological, physical, chemical and
biological properties have been studied by many researchers (Burgess & Webster,
1980; Gajem et al., 1981; Yost et al., 1982; Samra et al., 1988; Yates et al. 1988; Oztas,
1993).
The objectives of this study were to examine spatial variability in exchangeable
sodium (ESP), electrical conductivity (EC), soil pH and boron content (B) of soils
affected by salt and sodium in the Igdir plain (Turkey), and to assess spatial
distribution patterns of these soil properties within this study area.

Material and methods

Study Site

The Igdir plain is located in northeast Turkey. It includes 68,000 ha of irrigated land,
at a mean slope of 01%. Mean height above sea level is 850 m. The mean annual
precipitation is 2338 mm, and the mean annual evaporation is 10949 mm. The
mean annual temperature is 1161C, and the mean annual relative humidity is 63%
(Anon., 1984). Soils of the Igdir plain are mostly fine-textured (clay loam), having low
amounts of organic matter (o17%), and contain moderate levels of CaCO3 (2.6–
12.9%).
The Igdir plain is one of the most important agricultural production areas of
Turkey. However, about 36% of soils (25 000 ha) on the Igdir plain suffer from some
degree of salinity and/or alkalinity because of high evaporation (Avsar, 1982).
Extensive areas of the Igdir plain have become and continue to be degraded by
salinization due to the use of low-quality irrigation water with inappropriate irrigation
methods. As a result, agricultural production of the Igdir plain has declined
significantly in the last two decades.

Soil sampling and analyses

An area measuring 1000 m
1000 m was selected within the Igdir plain, divided into
100 m
100 m grid squares. The area is characterized by its saline and sodic soils. Soil
samples were collected at the intersections of the grid at depths of 0–30; 30–60
and 60–90 cm. The samples were air-dried, passed through a 2 mm sieve and analysed
for ESP, soluble salts, soil pH and B. ESP was determined using the ammonium
acetate (NH4OAc) method (Thomas, 1982). Soluble salts were estimated from the
measurement of EC in the soil extraction by the use of a conductivity meter
(Rhoades, 1982). Soil pH was determined using a glass electrode pH meter
(McLean, 1982), and B was determined according to the carmine method (Bingham,
1982).
Descriptive statistics were used to express the overall variability within the study
area. Spatial variability in measured soil properties was defined using geostatistical
methods. Experimental semivariograms were developed to determine the spatial
dependence of soil properties using the following equation given by Journel &
Huijbregts (1978):
1 X
gðhÞ ¼ ðZðxiÞ  Zðxi þ hÞÞ2
2NðhÞ

where g(h) is the semivariance; N(h) the number of experimental pairs separated by a
distance h; Z(xi) the measured sample value at point i and Z(xi + h) = measured sample
value at point i+h.
 SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF ESP 497

The best-fit semivariogram model for each soil property was chosen using least
squares, and was then used in kriging analysis. Block kriging analysis was used to
estimate the measured soil properties at unsampled locations at 10 m intervals.
Kriging maps were developed using GS+ geostatistical software (Gamma Design
Software, 1992).

Results and discussion

Descriptive statistics

The values for the mean, standard deviation and coefficient of variation
(CV) obtained for the measured soil properties are given in Table 1. The ESP, EC
and B of the soils, on the average, were highest in the upper soil layer, and
decreased with depth. However, soil pH increased slightly with soil depth. Variation in
the pH values was lowest. The highest CVs were obtained for the ESP values, which
may be related to the variation in clay content and cation exchange capacity
of the soils.

Geostatistical analyses

The experimental semivariograms were developed using untransformed data, since

the data exhibited sufficiently symmetrical distributions. Directional experimental
semivariograms were calculated at the angles of 01(N–S), 451(NE–SW), 901 (E–W)
and 1351 (SE–NW) for each soil property. There were no distinct differences among
the structures of the semivariograms in the four directions for any of the soil properties
studied. Therefore, all distributions of the measured soil properties were considered to
be isotropic. This means that directional effects are not present, and the semivariance
is only a function of the separation distance between pairs. The best-fitted
semivariogram models and model parameters such as nugget variance, sill variance,
range, and the rate of structural variance to sill variance obtained for soil properties
are presented in Table 1.
Geostatistical analysis of the studied soil properties indicated high spatial
dependence. The experimental semivariogram model was either linear, spherical or
exponential. The rate of structural variance, which is the difference between sill
variance/nugget, and sill variance was higher than 50% for ESP and EC, but it was
lower than 50% for B. This may indicate that the degree of spatial dependence for
ESP and EC is higher than for B of the soils.
The ranges of semivariograms, which indicate the maximum distances of spatial
variability of soil properties, varied around 600 m, except for soil pH that was
characterized by a linear model. The large distances of the range of influence may
show the importance of sampling the whole study area in future research.
The results of spatial dependence enabled the preparation of kriged maps of
the studied properties. The vertical and horizontal spatial distribution patterns of
measured soil properties are presented in Figs. 1–4. The distribution maps of
ESP values (Fig. 1) show similarities at the depths of 30–60 and 60–90 cm. Although
the distribution pattern of ESP at 0–30 cm depth was also similar, the ESP
values in the surface layer were generally higher than those of lower layers. The
highest ESP values were localized in the central and southern parts of the study area.
This may be a result of the relatively high clay content of soils in this part of the
study area.
The distribution patterns of EC values at different soil depths were similar to each
other (Fig. 2). Lower EC values were found in the west part of the study area, which is
similar to the variability of ESP. Although the overall variability in soil pH values was
 498
Table 1. Descriptive statistics, semivariogram models and model parameters for soil properties studied

Property Descriptive statistics Semivariogram models and parameters

Depth Mean S.D. CV Model Nugget Sill Range Sill-nugget/ r2
(cm) sill (%)
ESP(%) 0–30 20?7 15?5 77?8 Isotropic Spherical 159 429 533 62?9 0?932

30–60 15?5 9?7 62?6 Isotropic Spherical 151 386 625 60?9 0?837

60–90 13?7 8?9 65?2 Isotropic Spherical 124 402 680 69.2 0?894

O. ARDAHANLIOGLU
EC (dS m-1) 0–30 39?3 20?3 51?7 Isotropic Spherical 153 487 809 68?6 0?931

30–60 37?8 18?6 49?2 Isotropic Exponential 169 517 736 67?3 0?934

60–90 36?2 18?4 50?8 Isotropic Exponential 192 442 577 56?6 0?934

pH 1:2?5 0–30 8?1 0?8 9?9 Isotropic Linear 0?348 41?179 41414 F 0?901

30–60 8?2 0?7 8?5 Isotropic Linear 0?377 40?770 41200 F 0?883

60–90 8?4 0.7 8?9 Isotropic Linear 0?399 40?740 41200 F 0?926

Boron (p.p.m) 0–30 11?0 5?6 50?9 Isotropic Spherical 22?4 44?9 598 50?1 0?871

30–60 10?8 6?4 59?3 Isotropic Spherical 29?6 43?7 641 32?3 0?487

60–90 10?4 6?7 64?4 Isotropic Spherical 26?8 47 560 43?0 0?723
 SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF ESP 499

Figure 1. Distribution maps of ENa.

low across the study area, there were still some differences in distribution patterns
(Fig. 3). The highest pH values are found in the northeast. The distribution maps of B
of soils within the study area were similar to the maps of ESP and EC (Fig. 4).
500 O. ARDAHANLIOGLU

Figure 2. Distribution maps of EC.

Jackknifing analysis is a procedure in kriging whereby values at measured points are

estimated from surrounding known values. The predicted values are then compared to
the measured values (Vieria et al., 1983). This technique was used to test if the chosen
 SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF ESP 501

Figure 3. Distribution maps of soil pH.

semivariogram model accurately predicted soil properties at unsampled locations. The

results indicate that the mean reduced error was near zero and the squared difference
between the jackknifed and the original values, the variance of the reduced error, was
502 O. ARDAHANLIOGLU

Figure 4. Distribution maps of B.

lowest for the fitted models. This means that the kriging estimates are accurate, and
the spatial relationships derived from the studied part of the research site may be
applicable to other areas with similar characteristics in the Igdir plain.
 SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF ESP 503

Conclusion

The results of this study indicate that there are close similarities between the
distribution patterns of ESP, EC and boron content of the soils studied. Distribution
maps of these soil properties may be used confidently to develop indicator maps,
which can separate areas within the Igdir Plain, according to their management and
reclamation requirements. This approach will be used as part of a continuing research
programme.
The success of the methodology used in the present study has led to its application
elsewhere. The semivariogram ranges were used successfully as sampling criteria for
soil surveys in the assessment of salt-and sodium-affected areas using remote sensing
and geographical information system in the Igdir plain (Gulmez et al. 2000).

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