Impacts of Indigenous Stone Terraces and Land Units on Selected Soil Properties in Konso Area, Southern Ethiopia

Agricultural productivity in Ethiopia is severely limited by soil degradation, especially soil erosion. In the Konso area of Southern Ethiopia, farmers have long practiced indigenous soil and water conservation practices, particularly stone terraces, to mitigate erosion. Despite their longstanding use, the impacts of these structures on soil physicochemical properties remain unstudied and undocumented. This study assessed the effects of indigenous stone terraces and land units on selected soil properties by comparing terraced and nonterraced lands across four land units, each with three replications. Soil samples were collected from the 0–30 cm depth in each land unit, resulting in 24 composite samples that were analyzed in the soil laboratory for selected properties. Results showed that indigenous stone terraces significantly influenced most soil properties, whereas land units did not. Specifically, terraced soils exhibited higher porosity, soil pH, organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, exchangeable bases, and cation exchange capacity compared to nonterraced soils. Overall, these findings demonstrate that indigenous stone terraces enhance soil quality and thus warrant continued use.