Remedy for Soil Acidification at Tea Plantations inAnxi, Fujian

The soil acidification at tea plantations in Anxi county,Fujian province was analyzed based on 5,285 representative specimens collectedand tested from 2008 to 2010. The acidifying rate of the soils was calculated. Theremedial effect by applying dolomite on the plantations was determined by amulti-point-and-year positioning monitoring experiment. The pre-treatment pH ofthe area soils averaged 4.18. Of them, 28.38% was below 4.0, and merely 28.19% inan acceptable range of 4.5～5.5. The condition was considered severe. Theaverage acidifying rate of the tea plantation soils was 0.09 unit per year on pH,which was significantly higher than those of other agricultures. With an applicationof 300 kg·hm^-2 dolomite powder in two consecutive years, the soilpH at the plantations in Anxi raised 0.94 units on average. It appeared thatthe treatment could be effective for ameliorating the dire soil acidificationtrend at the tea plantations in the area.