2007/10/09 by Jan Nyssen, J Naudts, K. De Geyndt +4 · 2 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Agroforestry #Colluvium #Ecology #Environmental science #Geography #Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Agriculture #Land use #Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology #Regosol #Soil classification #Soil erosion and sediment transport #Soil science #Soil series #Soil type #Soil water #Vertisol
paper · doi:10.1002/ldr.840
openalex publication_date 2007/10/09 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/14
Abstract Land use in a 208 ha representative catchment in the Tigray Highlands, Dogu'a Tembien district in Northern Ethiopia was studied in relation to soil geography. Typical soils are Vertisols, Vertic Cambisols, Cumulic Regosols, Calcaric Regosols and Phaeozems. Patterns of land use vary greatly within the catchment and results from χ 2 ‐tests showed strong associations ( p < 0·001) between soil type and land use and crop production system. There is a strong association between cropland and colluvium high in basaltic content because the most fertile soils, such as Vertisols and Vertic Cambisols, have developed on this material. Preference is for autochthonous soils on in situ parent material, irrespective of the rock type, to be put under rangeland. Land use by smallholders in Dogu'a Tembien appears to be the result primarily of the interaction between environmental and social factors. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.