Soil quality gradients around water-points under different management systems in a semi-arid savanna, South Africa

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dc.contributor.authorSmet M.
dc.contributor.authorWard D.
dc.date.accessioned2011-05-15T15:59:30Z
dc.date.available2011-05-15T15:59:30Z
dc.date.issued2006
dc.description.abstractOver 70% of South Africa is too arid for crop farming and is used for either commercial livestock ranching, communal livestock ranching, or game ranching. The inherently different management characteristics of these ranching systems and their effects on vegetation dynamics makes rangeland degradation a contentious issue. We used 500-m-long grazing gradients around water-points to evaluate the effects of management type on soil quality. Results showed significant negative effects of management type on soil parameters (i.e. soil pH, nitrogen, and organic carbon) within 0-100 m from the water-point. Commercial livestock ranching had the greatest negative effect on the immediate area around the water-point. Beyond 100 m, no effect of herbivore activity on soil parameters was detected under any management system. © 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
dc.description.versionArticle
dc.identifier.citationJournal of Arid Environments
dc.identifier.citation64
dc.identifier.citation2
dc.identifier.issn1401963
dc.identifier.other10.1016/j.jaridenv.2005.04.014
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/11210
dc.subjectranching
dc.subjectrangeland
dc.subjectsemiarid region
dc.subjectsoil quality
dc.subjectvegetation dynamics
dc.subjectAfrica
dc.subjectEastern Hemisphere
dc.subjectSouth Africa
dc.subjectSouthern Africa
dc.subjectSub-Saharan Africa
dc.subjectWorld
dc.titleSoil quality gradients around water-points under different management systems in a semi-arid savanna, South Africa
dc.typeArticle
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