Name of the Upazila: Jhalokathi
The development of the agricultural land depends on the climate, physiography, soil and the availability of the groundwater of the specific area. Based on the criteria, the Jhalokathi Upazila is divided into 10 mapping units. There are 10 unions, 1 city corporation, 167 mouza in Jhalakathi Sadar Upazila. The Upazila is divided into 3 wards.
Total Area and Total Soil Area
The Jhalakathi Sadar is situated in the northern part of Jhalokathi Zila. In the north side of the Upazila Banaripara, Wazirpur and Babuganj are situated, Rajapur is situated in the southern part of the Upazila, Pirojpur is situated in the western side of the Upazila. The total area of the Upazila is 213 square km.
| Areas | Total area | 21,293 hectares |
| Total Soil Area | 15,553 hectares |
Physiography wise area (with AEZ)
The Jhalakathi Sadar Upazila is consist of two agro-ecological zones: Ganges Floodplains (12) and Ganges Tidal Floodplains (13). The higher ridges of Ganges Tidal Floodplains (13) are not inundated in the rainy season while the lower ridges and bills are inundated in the rainy season easily.
| Physiography wise area (with AEZ) | AEZ | Area (hectares) |
| Ganges Floodplains (12) | 295 | |
| Ganges Tidal Floodplains (13) | 14791 |
List of Soil Groups with the area and their main properties
The Upazila is divided into 8 soil groups based on different physical and chemical properties of the soils such as color, texture, consistency, pH, drainage etc. The soil groups are Sara, Gopalpur, Ramgati, Jhalokathi, Barishal, Betagi, Pirojpur, Tidal Alluvium. The dominant texture of the soils of the area is loam, clayey and clay loam. The drainage condition also varies from one soil group to another soil group. But, the drainage condition of the soils of the area is not good and that ranges from somewhat poorly drained to very poorly drained. The pH of the soils can be neutral, slightly alkaline and slightly acidic. The soil color also varies from one soil group to another. The soil color can be determined by using Munsell Color Chart.
| Soil group | Area (hectares) | Main Properties |
| Sara | 201 | · Color: Pale Brown with Gray Mottles
· Texture: Loamy · Consistency: Friable · pH: Slightly alkaline · Drainage: Somewhat poorly drained to poorly drained |
| Gopalpur | 94 | · Color: Pale Brown with Gray Mottles
· Texture: Clayey Loam · Consistency: Friable · pH: Neutral to Slightly alkaline · Drainage: Poorly Drained |
| Ramgati | 1925 | · Color: Gray with Brown Mottles
· Texture: Loamy · Consistency: Friable · pH: Neutral to Slightly alkaline · Drainage: Somewhat poorly drained to poorly drained |
| Jhalokathi | 8317 | · Color: Gray with Brown Mottles
· Texture: Loamy · Consistency: Hard · pH: Neutral · Drainage: Somewhat poorly drained to poorly drained |
| Barishal | 4222 | · Color: Dark Gray with Brown Mottles
· Texture: Clayey · Consistency: Hard · pH: Neutral · Drainage: Somewhat poorly drained to poorly drained |
| Betagi | 17 | · Color: Dark Gray
· Texture: Loamy · Consistency: Sticky · pH: Neutral to slightly acidic · Drainage: Very poorly drained |
| Pirojpur | 130 | · Color: Dark Gray
· Texture: Clayey · Consistency: Sticky · pH: Neutral to slightly acidic · Drainage: Very poorly drained |
| Tidal alluvium | 180 | · Color: Gray
· Texture: Loamy · Consistency: Friable · pH: Slightly alkaline · Drainage: Poorly drained |
Map title and year
The soil resource Development Institute has worked on the soil and landform of the Jhalakathi Sadar Upazila. In 1991, the SRDI mapped the Upazila based on the soil and landform. The map title is Soil and Landform Map and that is renewed in 2007.
| Map title | Soil and Landform Map |
| Year | 1991 (Renew: 2007) |
Scale and Longitude and Latitude of the Map
The scale of the map that is prepared by SRDI is 1: 50000 and the longitude of the map is from 90°06′E to 90°17′E and the latitude is 22°35′N to 22°47′ N.
| Scale | 1: 50000 |
| Longitude of the Map | 90°06′E to 90°17′E |
| Latitude of the Map | 22°35′N to 22°47′ N |
The number of Mapping Units
The area of the map can be categorized based on some mapping units such as consociation, association, complex, etc.
| Total Number of Mapping Units | 10 (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10) |
| Consociation | 9,10 |
| Association | 1,2, 3, 4,5,6,7 |
| Complex | Null |
| Undifferentiated | Null |
List of Land Types with Area
The land type of the Upazila is actually medium highland to highland. But, the area of medium highland is pretty much higher than the highland of the Upazila.
| Land type | Area (hectares) |
| Medium Highland | 14492 |
| Highland | 1061 |
Unit Wise Main Land Uses (≥40%)
The cropping pattern of the Jhalakathi Sadar Upazila varies. FA-TAUS-TA is the dominated cropping pattern of the area and that is about 3232 hectares. On the other hand, the second dominated cropping pattern is Boro-FA-TA.
| Mapping Unit | Cropping Pattern | Area (hectares) | Percentage, % |
| Unit-1 | Red gram-Jute-TA | 72 | 90 |
| Unit-2 | FA-FA-TA | 161 | 75 |
| Unit-3 | Guava Cultivation | 212 | 50 |
| Unit-4 | Pea-F-TA | 898 | 40 |
| Unit-5 | FA-FA-TA | 281 | 50 |
| Unit-6 | FA-TAUS-TA | 3232 | 65 |
| Unit-7 | Boro-FA-TA | 2652 | 40 |
| Unit-8 | FA-FA-TA | 174 | 80 |
| Unit-9 | Boro-FA-FA | 86 | 100 |
| Unit-10 | FA-FA-TA | 180 | 100 |
Land Suitability Matrix
There is a Land Suitability Matrix that is basically proposed by Soil Resource Development Institute (SRDI) in Bangladesh. Different land and soil qualities such as land types, relief, water recession, drainage, soil texture, topsoil consistency, available soil moisture, soil pH, salinity, etc are considered as the properties are easily identifiable in the field and these are relating with Agro-ecological conditions (AEZ). The land suitability matrix sheet is attached here.
The best suitable cropping pattern of the Upazila (Maybe one or two)
According to the Land Suitability Matrix FA-T.Aus-TA and Boro-FA-TA can be considered as the best suitable cropping pattern of Jhalokathi Sadar Upazila.
| The best suitable cropping pattern of Jhalokathi Upazila | FA-T.Aus-TA |
| Boro-FA-TA |
Main Agricultural Limitations of the Upazila
– There are about 15553 hectares arable land in Jhalakathi Upazila. But, 5268 hectares land is affected by salinity throughout the Upazila. In the dry season, the level of salinity is about zero and that water of the river and canal can be used for irrigation in the dry season.
-There is a deficiency of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Zinc in the soil of the Upazila.
Acknowledgment: I am grateful to Jalal Uddin Sir for his constant encouragement and support to complete the assignment.
Author:
Md. Nayem Hasan Munna
Soil and Environmental Sciences,
The University of Barishal,
Barishal, Bangladesh.
Email: [email protected]
Websites: www.nayemhasanmunna.info
www.ourgreenlab.org