Soil erosion by water poses a serious threat to agricultural production in the northwestern tract of India which has weak and ecologically degraded land, undulating terrain and structurally poor soils. Absence of fencing has been one of the main features of cultivation in the area. Keeping these points in view, the effect of fencing was studied on morphological, chemical and physical attributes of soils in the tract. The most significant and critical differences, however, observed were decrease in thickness of A-horizon , organic matter content and increase in clay content in severely eroded profiles than that in moderately eroded profiles in the area. With increase in effective soil depth, saturated hydraulic conductivity, Mean Weight Diameter (MWD) and organic C content decreased with respect to A-horizon depth. However, Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) showed an inconsistent trend in subsurface layered depths as compared to A-horizon (surface layer) of the studied profiles. The organic C content was 108.3% and 72.7% and total soil N was 54.3% and 38.9% less for the subsurface layer ( 30-60 cm ) as compared to the surface layer (0-5 cm) in fenced and non-fenced areas, respectively. The available phosphorus content was significantly higher by 9.5% in fenced than that in non-fenced treatment, respectively. The resistance to penetration was 237.5% and 98.6% more in 10-15 cm layer than that in 0-5 and 5-10 cm layers, respectively through fencing. The most useful indicators from the point of view of assessing soil quality in the area are organic c, total N, bulk density and total porosity.

Ever since the beginning of 19^th century, the semiarid ecosystem in the foothills of Shivaliks has led to significant changes not only in the utilization of vegetation for meeting the requirements of fuel, fodder and timber but also in the structure of the soils, particularly the topsoil horizon due to cutting of forests and cultivation of the land intensively for agricultural purposes. The depth of the A-horizon has been found to diminish under without fencing, mainly as a result of soil compaction and compression caused by the human activity. Among the degradation effects induced by overgrazing are increase in bulk density, penetration resistance, higher soil loss from water erosion, changes in pore space distribution, decrease in soil aggregate stability and infiltration rate (Green et al., 1994; Proffit et al., 1995; and Castillo et al., 1997). Apart from contribution to defoliation, the deterioration of soil properties and changes in botanical composition, grazing can also have a negative effect on root growth (Vepraskas, 1994; and Verkaar, 1988).

Higher stocking rates and concurrent droughts exacerbate the effects of grazing. Villamil et al. (2001) observed significant changes not only in the physiognomy of the vegetation but also in the structure of the soils, particularly the topsoil horizon at Caldonal, Argentina. The negative effects of grazing on the physical properties of soils can be observed to a depth of 10 cm. In order to meet daily requirements of fuel, fodder and timber purposes, farmers allow their livestock to graze and cut forests in the area. But the discernible effects of such activities on soil attributes and soil quality are not known in submontane region.

Soil And Water Sciences Journal, Geomorphological Processes, Prowine Cone Ring Penetrometer, Multivariate Analysis, Regression Analysis, Principal Components, Crop Production, botanical composition, penetration resistance.