Soil Physicochemical properties under Bamboos in lower and Mid hills of Himachal Pradesh

The present investigation was carried out in low and mid hill conditions of Himachal Pradesh which represent the wet sub-temperate zone, humid sub-temperate zone, humid sub-tropical zone, and sub-humid tropical zones of the state. A detailed survey of the bamboo growing areas of Himachal Pradesh was carried out and then the study area was divided into four altitudinal ranges. Composite soil samples were collected from bamboo groves at each site from 0-30 cm (L1) and 30-60 cm (L2) soil depth for analyzing physice-chemical properties of soil. It is concluded that bamboo has the potential to rehabilitate the degraded lands by improving the physical and chemical properties of soil within a short period.