Bambang Kusumo

Citation

Thesis Title
Development of field techniques to predict soil carbon, soil nitrogen and root density from soil spectral reflectance

Read article at Massey Research Online:

Mr Kusumo developed and evaluated field techniques for rapid in situ measurement of soil carbon, a measure important in carbon footprinting New Zealand’s land-based industries. He developed a probe for a portable spectrometer capturing visible and near infrared reflectance spectra from soil. Mr Kusumo calibrated the change in soil spectral properties with changes in soil carbon concentrations. The resulting calibration model was then used to predict carbon concentrations in other soil samples from their spectral reflectance. Mr Kusumo also proved that spectral reflectance could be used to predict soil nitrogen concentrations, and accurately predicted root densities under pasture soils and maize crops. This method for predicting root density; an important property in soil carbon dynamics, nutrient uptake and plant water use, is a new technique that researchers are likely to very quickly adopt to improve the sustainability of agricultural systems.

Supervisors
Professor Michael Hedley
Mr Mike Tuohy
Dr Carolyn Hedley