GEOCHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS ANALYSIS OF SOILS AROUND NDATA AREA IN THYOLO DISTRICT

Thyolo, is an area in southern Malawi where there is presence of different types of soil that have different soil chemical properties and physical properties. Particularly the area of interest is Ndata area found in Mmina Village where the main aim was to analyze the different types of soil and with their physical and chemical properties. The study was conducted using both non-random and random sampling technique of collecting data where nonrandom there was a use of grid sampling and random mainly it used zone sampling of data collection. The physical properties that were analyzed were soil texture that identified the main type of soil as sandy loam soil, soil porosity that identified that Ndata has low porosity and not necessary for agriculture until it is tilled but it is suitable for construction the same applied for index property the water content soil color where it identified that the soil had moderate organic matter present. Lastly the chemical properties that were done were soil pH in which it identified the pH as a neutral suitable for agriculture and the other one was the elemental composition analysis of macro elements Nitrogen ,Phosphorus and Pottasium where they are present in necessary amount hence less application of fertilizer.

Particularly the area of interest is Ndata area found in Mmina Village where the main aim was to analyze the different types of soil and with their physical and chemical properties. The study was conducted using both non-random and random sampling technique of collecting data where nonrandom there was a use of grid sampling and random mainly it used zone sampling of data collection. The physical properties that were analyzed were soil texture that identified the main type of soil as sandy loam soil, soil porosity that identified that Ndata has low porosity and not necessary for agriculture until it is tilled but it is suitable for construction the same applied for index property the water content soil color where it identified that the soil had moderate organic matter present. Lastly the chemical properties that were done were soil pH in which it identified the pH as a neutral suitable for agriculture and the other one was the elemental composition analysis of macro elements Nitrogen ,Phosphorus and Pottasium where they are present in necessary amount hence less application of fertilizer.

The Thyolo area occupies approximately 2600 km2 of the southern region of Malawi and it is bounded by Latitude: -16° 03' 60.00" S and Longitude: 35° 07' 60.00" E (Hadgood, Holt, & Walshaw, 1973).

Traditional authority: TA Chimaliro

District: Thyolo

Coordinates: -15.9729, 35.19975