Traditional Knowledge for Sustainable Management of Soils - Principles of Sustainable Soil Management in Agroecosystems - page 308

TABLE 13.4
Traditional Soil Classification Followed in Arunachal Pradesh

Local Name of
the Land/Terrain Texture of the Soil Color Remarks

Uttola Sandy Pale brown Poor fertility

Kanla Sandy clay Dark grayish

Brown soil

High fertility

Kannan Clayey Dark brown Moderate fertility

Lengehing Loam Red Low in water and nutrient holding

Ponglung Loam Yellow brown Good fertility

Source: Kuldip, G.A., A. Arunachalam, and B.K. Dutta, Indian J. Tradit. Knowl. , 10, 508-511, 2011.

In Assam, all soils were described by textural properties and some by color. Soils
are either sandy (Balu), clayey (Poli), or sticky (Athail). The other two soils, Lal and
Ujar, are distinguished by their color (Das and Das 2005). Table 13.5 shows the five
types of soil identified by rice farmers of this region.
In central Himalayas, farmers classified lands as per their location in the forests,
hills, or valley and likely use they are put to (Sanyal and Dhyani 2007). This is an
excellent toposequence-based classification (Table 13.6).

TABLE 13.5
Traditional Soil Classification Followed in Assam
Farmers'
Soil Name

Color Remarks

Poli Dark brown Tendency to become waterlogged

Athail Dark brown Good water retention capacity

Lal Reddish often mixed with dark colored soil Water retention capacity adequate

Ujar Whitish to grayish white Water retention capacity adequate

Balu Light brown Water retention capacity very poor

especially during dry season

Source: Das, T., and A.K. Das, Indian J. Tradit. Knowl. , 4(1), 94-99, 2005.

TABLE 13.6
Land Classification in Central Himalayas

Local Name Location Use

Nalies Adjacent to the forests Irregular cultivation

Upran Between Nalies and valley Rainfed agriculture

Talaon Valley area Irrigated by rivulets, springs, and streams

Source: Sanyal, P.K., and P. Dhyani, Outlook Agric. , 36, 49-56, 2007.