Detailed soil mapping and classification study for sustainable agricultural land management; Samsun-Vezirköprü example

This study aims to determine basic physico-chemical soil properties, make a classification, create a soil database, and generate a digital soil map for agricultural areas that cover about 111 km2 ha and includes 18 villages located in Vezirköprü district in the Samsun province. The average annual temperature is 12.52 °C and the annual average rainfall is 518 mm. According to the Newhall simulation model, soil temperature and moisture regimes are Mesic and Typic Xeric, respectively. Field observations and investigation of topographical, geological, and geomorphological maps, 16 soil pedons were described. Soil samples were taken from each pedon based on the genetic horizon and laboratory analyzes were performed. The detailed field study was carried out by considering the grid method and auger examination. The determination and description of 16 soil series were made by evaluating the findings of analyses and field research. Due to their quick pedological processes, six of them were classified as Entisol, six as Inceptisol, three as Verisol, and one as Alfisol. Vertisols cover about 35.63% of the total area followed by Inceptisols at 22.3%, Entisols at 22.3%, and Alfisol at 13.58%. As for FAO-WRB classification system, soils were classified as Vertisol, Cambisol, Leptosol, and Luvisol. In addition, whereas the Bakçekonak series has the largest area (15.02%), the Yürükçal series was determined as the smallest land (1.65%) in the study area.