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Article Info Received : 12.12.2016 Accepted : 03.03.2017 Land evaluation, using a scientific method, is essential to recognize the potential and limitation of a given land for specific use in terms of its suitability, and certifies its sustainable use. The soil is such a source that its renewal takes a long time, so effective use of soil and land resources requires a thorough understanding of the effective morphological processes of soil forming in different regions. The current study identified available soil in the area in terms of interpretation of aerial photographs and Geopedological approach. After mapping the geoform area, 61 profiles of the designated area were drilled and sampling was done for all diagnostic horizons. Then, the samples were transported to the laboratory for Physico-chemical analysis. By the end of the profile classification process, which was based on the Soil Survey Staff (2014), the soil map, was prepared by integration of the soil data and the geoform map in ArcGIS software. There are several limiting factors for wheat in Qazvin plain, namely; electric conductivity (EC), gypsum, coarse fragment, soil depth, soil organic carbon (SOC), texture, calcium carbonate and climate. The map of the land units was prepared, and land requirements for the type of utility were calculated. Land suitability evaluation was performed according to FAO. The results showed that land unit's number 17 and 18 were unsuitable (N1) for irrigating wheat with limiting factors such as; high levels of EC and gypsum in the studied profiles. Moreover, the land unit's number 10, 20, and 23 are suitable (S1) for the wheat production and have the highest rate of predicted yield.

Surface roughness is an important factor in many soil moisture retrieval models. Therefore, any mischaracterization of surface roughness parameters (root mean square height, RMSH, and correlation length, ʅ) may result in unreliable predictions and soil moisture estimations. In many environments, but particularly in agricultural settings, surface roughness parameters may show different behaviours with respect to the orientation or azimuth. Consequently, the relationship between SAR polarimetric variables and surface roughness parameters may vary depending on measurement orientation. Generally, roughness obtained for many SAR-based studies is estimated using pin profilers that may, or may not, be collected with careful attention to orientation to the satellite look angle. In this study, we characterized surface roughness parameters in multi-azimuth mode using a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS). We characterized the surface roughness parameters in different orientations and then examined the sensitivity between polarimetric variables and surface roughness parameters; further, we compared these results to roughness profiles obtained using traditional pin profilers. The results showed that the polarimetric variables were more sensitive to the surface roughness parameters at higher incidence angles (θ). Moreover, when surface roughness measurements were conducted at the look angle of RADARSAT-2, more significant correlations were observed between polarimetric variables and surface roughness parameters. Our results also indicated that TLS can represent more reliable results than pin profiler in the measurement of the surface roughness parameters.

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