CALCIUM CARBONATE CONTENT IN THE SOIL OF NISAVA DISTRICT

Abstract

Calcium is one of the most abundant elements in the lithosphere and the fifth most abundant element in the soil. It has a great impact on plants and affects the structure and pH value of the soil, and calcium deficiency in the soil causes an increase in soil acidity (decrease in soil pH). Plants need calcium for development. Calcium available to plants is formed after decomposition, most often caused by carbon dioxide (CO2). The measure that is recommended in case of calcium deficiency in the soil is calcification. Carbonates can also be harmful; in the soil of a alkaline reaction and with a high content of lime, it reduces the absorption (availability) of phosphorus (P) and most microelements. The objective of this paper was to examine the abundance of soil with easily accessible forms of calcium (CaCO3, %-calcium carbonate or calcite) in the territory of Nisava District (Southern and Eastern Serbia) in 2016, which covers an area of 2.729 km². The total number of samples was 2.013 from 357 agricultural farms. The CaCO3 content in soil samples was determined with a calcimeter in accordance with the method of Scheibler. The obtained data were processed in the computer program IBM SPSS Statistic – trial version 20. The analysis showed that the soils in this area were insufficiently supplied with calcium carbonate. As many as 84.5% of the samples fall into the class of soil insufficiently provided with calcium, with a calcium carbonate percentage between 0-5%, while only 1.5% of the total number of samples can be classified as soil abundant in calcium carbonate