Soil characteristics of rice fields in several regions in Indonesia

The soil of rice fields in Grobogan Regency, Cntral Java Province comprised a clay texture (80%) and was slightly alkaline (pH 7.64). Both P and K nutrients extracted with 25% HCl were relatively high, base cations were dominated by Ca, while Mg, K, and Na levels ranged from moderate to low. The saturation of the Ca nutrient in the soil was 65.75%, while Mg, K, and Na reached 2.92%, 0.32%, and 0.56% respectively. The CEC of the soil was high, and the base saturation was extremely high. Similarly, the soil rice fields found in Pandeglang Regency, West Java was neutral (pH 6.4) with a clay texture (51%). In neutral to alkaline soil conditions, some nutrients were available at higher levels, such as basic cations including K, Ca, and Mg. The C-organic and total N content were found at low levels of 1.69 and 0.12%, respectively. The cation content in the soil detected at quite high levels was Mg, while K was low and Ca was high. Additionally, the soil samples had high CEC and extremely high base saturation. The soil of rice fields in the Sukadana, Lampung Province location appeared slightly acidic (pH 4.63) and comprised a sandy clay loam texture, leading to a lower content of K, Ca, Mg, C-organic, and total N, along with high potential P and available P nutrient. Meanwhile, potential K and exchangeable K were low, along with low levels of soil CEC and base saturation.