Assessment of the impact of various land use systems on soil acidity of agricultural lands in the Donetsk People's Republic

The aim of the present research was to study the actual, exchangeable and hydrolytic acidity of the soils of agricultural lands of the Donetsk People's Republic. The model sites were selected on lands of various degradation degrees, laid in the eastern and western parts of the Shakhtyorsk district of the Donetsk People's Republic and covered by low- and medium-humus chernozems with low and medium erosion degrees. The site with steppe vegetation (medium humus chernozem) was chosen as the control one. When studying the actual acidity index in the soils of agrocenoses of model sites, a variation in the pH values from medium acidic to medium alkaline was established. The studying of exchangeable acidity fluctuations in various sites showed a significant excess of indicators in the slope areas under wheat (3.6–6.4 times) compared to the values of plakor soil. To the least extent, degradation processes affected the values of the exchangeable acidity of fallow sites, as well as under vegetable crops, where the excess of indicators ranged from 1.1 to 1.5 times. Hydrolytic acidity values in the areas under crops were significantly higher than hydrolytic acidity values in the control site (4–10 times). The values of hydrolytic acidity in the soils of agrocenoses under tomatoes, fallow, onions (subsurface horizon) were not reliably distinguished from the control ones, which is a positive factor for the successful cultivation of a wide range of crops.