Human-altered soils — Signatures of Anthrosols and their potential for arable lands

• Past human activities result in the formation of Anthrosols and the accumulation of nutrients. • Enrichment in physicochemical properties relates to the intensity of settlement activities. • The level of releasability contributes to the extended retention of nutrients in soils. • Past settlement sites represent nutrient-rich Anthrosols suitable for arable fields. The fertility of human-altered soils, Anthrosols, developed from past settlement activities for crop production is scarcely studied. The study evaluated the fertility of Anthrosols developed from the 15th to mid-20th century AD settlement in Old Buipe, Savanna region, Ghana, to determine whether abandoned localities are suitable for arable fields. Human activities enhanced the physical attributes of the Anthrosols: brown to dark brown intergrain fine soil, 15%–35% organic matter, 15%–30% potsherd, and 5%–15% charred materials. The Anthrosols were slightly acidic to neutral reactions (Formula presented.), high cation exchange capacity (CEC; 18.77–45.31me/100 g), electric conductivity (EC = 0.28–0.36 dS m⁻¹), accumulation, and distribution of organic C, total N, P, Mn, Cu, Zn, K, and Fe, and available P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn. Plant-available nutrients were comparatively higher than concentrations in non-anthropogenic soils. The level of releasability (bioavailable fractions of total concentrations) of P, K, Ca, Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn partly compensates for low plant-available portions. Enrichment of chemical and physical properties of Anthrosols make them fertile for arable fields. The signatures of settlement activities are strong and can remain in soils for a long time, even under harsh environmental conditions. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]