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Soil erosion and nutrient depletion have been the major challenges in Ethiopia that adversely affect soil fertility and crop productivity. With the aim of curbing land degradation problems, efforts are underway on the implementation of soil and water conservation (SWC) practices. This research investigated the effects of SWC practices on soil properties and crop productivity in cultivated lands of Bashe micro-watershed, Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia. Data were collected from five different practices viz. non-conserved land, physical SWC (2 and 5 years age); and physical SWC integrated with biological practices (2 and 5 years age). The result revealed that integrated SWC for 5 years reduced the soil bulk density; and increased soil pH (5.87 to 6.60), organic carbon (1.34 to 1.74%) and available phosphorous (8.06 to 25.23 mg kg−1) by 12%, 30% and 203% compared to non-conserved land, respectively. Agronomic analysis also indicted that SWC practices significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced plant height, tiller formation, spike length, thousand seed weight, biomass, and grain yield of wheat. Integrated SWC for 5 years increased grain yield by 72.8% than control. It is concluded that SWC practices have positive impacts on soil and crop productivity of cultivated lands; however, their effect is more pronounced when physical SWC practices are integrated with biological SWC practices and at a longer establishment.
Tanto et al. (Tue,) studied this question.