Micronutrient Cation Studies of Some Paddy Growing Soils of Kashmir

A study on some paddy growing soils of Kashmir at different altitudes was carried from April 2007 –April 2009. Micronutrients or minor elements are required in very small quantities usually less than a pound per acre per year. Most micronutrient deficiencies are not wide spread but once they occur they result in plant abnormalities, reduced growth or crop failure. Toxicities can also occur since several of these elements have rather narrow range between deficiency and toxicity levels .Once harmful levels have been established the problem is more difficult to correct than a deficiency. The importance of micronutrients cations viz. Zn, Cu, Mn and Fe to agricultural crop is well recognized but the information in the major soil groups of Kashmir is lacking. Such information would be useful in ascertaining the current deficiencies/sufficiency of micronutrients. The micronutrient cations are relatively present in adequate amounts in nearly all the soils, yet their availability presents a problem in many soils. The physico chemical properties and micronutrient status of the soils was determined and the correlation between physico chemical properties and available micronutrients and the correlation of micronutrient cations with the contents in plants were determined. The results revealed that the soils were generally acidic to neutral in reaction with medium to high organic carbon content. Moreover, the results revealed that the soils are rich in available Zn, Cu, Mn and Fe content while the plant analysis revealed that the nutrients were present in adequate quantity.