Evaluation of three organic soil emendations on clay soil for blueberry cultivar using cluster interpolated spatial maps

Abstract Organic agriculture are the agri-environmental measures and agri-ecological alternatives which result in value-added agriculture. This study determined through interpolation of geostatistical analysis mapping if the organic measures were bio-intensive, modifying the soil to meet the requirements for the blueberry cultivar. The area of study was a blueberry orchard of 0.88 hectares, in the municipality of Cusihuriachi, Chihuahua, México, which had undergone three distinct organic soil emendation treatments to raised-beds: (t1) gypsum and sulfur, (t2) gypsum, sulfur and compost, and (t3) gypsum, sulfur, compost and pine saw dust. Twenty-four soil samples were taken at 0 to 30 centimeters throughout the orchard from the raised beds, 75 days after the application of the three soil treatments. Soil analysis techniques were used to determine percent of clay in soil, pH of soil, amount of nitrates mg.kg-1 of soil, and percent of organic material in soil. The geostatistical analysis was determined through groups of similarity and difference with cluster Ward grouping. With the results from the analysis of cluster Ward an interpolated map was generated for each parameter using ArcMap and inverse distance weighting interpolation. The conclusion from this study was that interpolation mapping was a useful visualization tool, to determine that there was no weighted difference between the three emendation treatments, and that none of the treatments were effective enough to emendate the soil to the conditions desired by blueberry cultivar for the parameters observed. The maps were also helpful in determining specific soil conditions, outside of the treatment area, which could be utilized by the producer to determine a precision agriculture management plan, which could be considered as an additional agri-environmental measurement.