PRELIMINARY-ANALYSIS OF SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION OF SOIL-MOISTURE ON A DEFORESTED SLOPE

Soil moisture was measured over a four-month period at 31 sample points on a 1 ha clear-cut site on southern Vancouver Island. At each sample point measurements were collected at 10-cm intervals to the base of the soil profile. The data were used to determine spatial and temporal variations in soil moisture, and to infer the most likely mechanism(s) of soil-water movement vertically through the soil profiles and laterally across the site. All soils showed an increase in moisture content through the monitoring period. There was no strong tendency for moisture content to increase downslope along the topographic gradient. All soils exhibited an increase in soil moisture at depths of 20-30 cm, followed by a decline. This zone of increased soil moisture was correlated with the main root zone, and not with any textural contrasts. Topographic and textural influences on moisture movement through the soil matrix appear to be of minor importance. Moisture appears to follow paths dictated by root systems, which do not necessarily follow the microtopography.