Determination of vegetation characteristics and grazing capacity of the Kalecik rangeland in Mardin province

In this study, vegetation and soil characteristics of the pasture area were analysed in Kalecik pasture located in Nusaybin district of Mardin province during the plant growth and development period of 2023. During the research, plant species, plant covered area, botanical composition, above and below ground biomass, grazing capacity and pasture condition of the pasture area were studied. In addition, some general characteristics related to soil properties were determined. The texture class of the soils in the study area was determined to be clayey with 51.10%. The pH value of the soils was found to be slightly alkaline at 7.95. The lime content is moderate at 6.80% and the organic matter content is moderate at 2.51%. The salinity was measured as slightly saline with 0.340 mS/cm. The vegetation structure of the pasture area, 220 plant taxa belonging to 40 plant groups were identified. The families with the most taxa were Asteraceae with 25 taxa, Fabaceae with 15 taxa and Brassicaceae with 14 taxa, respectively. The average plant-covered area value of the study area was determined as 63.96% and botanical composition to be 53.75% Poaceae, 10.83% Fabaceae and 35.42% other families. The average above-ground biomass amount of the pasture area was determined as 662.06 kg/da, and the average below-ground biomass amount was determined as 564.06 kg/da. The grazing capacity was determined as 469.8 Animal Units (BBHB) and the pasture condition was determined as good. According to the results of the research, it was determined that pasture vegetation was damaged and there was overgrazing pressure. This situation reveals that pastures should be improved and effective rehabilitation methods should be determined. In addition, it is necessary to reduce the grazing pressure and increase the qualified vegetation cover that protects the soil against erosion.