Influence of Slope and Depth on Soil Chemical Properties in an Oil Palm Plantation

A study was carried out in a 28-year old Oil palm (Elaeis guineesis) plantation established on a gently sloping terrain in NIFOR Benin, Nigeria to determine the geo-spatial distribution of soil chemical properties as influenced by slope position and depth and also the assess the relationship between soil chemical properties with slope and depth. A line transect was delineated along the slope of the selected plantation. The line transect was 45 m long and 45 m wide. It was divided into three equal slope segments namely, Summit, Mid and bottoms slope respectively. Each slope was further sub-divided into three (3) quadrants measuring 15 m x 15 m making a total of nine (9) plots. The slope of the study area was determined from the topographic map generated using a graphical plot of elevation against the measured distance. The slope was determined along each slope line distance 15 meters apart. A total of 72 samples covering four depths (0-15 cm, 15- 30 cm, 30-45 cm and 45-60 cm) were obtained using a soil auger. Each sampling point was geo-referenced using a GPS (global positioning system).Soil chemical properties (pH, O.C, N, P, Ca, Mg, K, Na, H) were determined in the laboratory using standard methods. The result of the statistical analysis revealed a significant difference (P