THE ERODIBILITY OF SOME NIGERIAN SOILS - A COMPARISON OF RAINFALL SIMULATOR RESULTS WITH ESTIMATES OBTAINED FROM THE WISCHMEIER NOMOGRAM

The erodibility (K) of 55 surface soils, sampled from different regions of Nigeria, was assessed using a rainfall simulator, and compared with estimates (K//c) obtained using the W. H. Wischmeier nomogram method. Soil erodibility values ranged from 0. 000 to 0. 535. The actual measured erodibility was greater than that estimated, often by several orders of magnitude. In soils with high silt content, however, the estimated K//c was slightly higher than the measured K. The K factor was significantly and negatively correlated with the infiltration rate, organic carbon content, sand fraction, wet density, and percentage stable aggregates. In contrast, the K factor was positively correlated with per cent reduction in infiltration rate, clay, and silt content, and the instability indices proposed by Henin and L. De Leenheer-M. De Boodt.