Coupled Relationship between Soil Physicochemical Properties and Plant Diversity in the Process of Vegetation Restoration

Abstract

An in-depth exploration of plant–soil interactions can improve our knowledge of the succession and evolution of forest ecosystems. To understand the coupling relationship between species diversity and soil physicochemical properties in natural secondary forests during the process of vegetation restoration, the species diversity of trees, shrubs and herbs and the physicochemical properties of soil at different depths were investigated in six forest communities in the Qinling Huoditang area over two years (2013 and 2019). The analysis indicated that the soil nutrient content in the region decreased during this period, but the plant diversity index showed no obvious change. Through RDA and regression analysis, we determined that the correlations between plant diversity and soil physicochemical properties were discrete. The tree and herb species diversity were most closely related to the surface soil, while shrub diversity was more strongly regulated by the middle soil layer. Available phosphorus had the strongest effect on trees, and the main factors affecting shrubs were NO3-N and NH4-N. Herb growth was more limited by soil physical properties such as the soil bulk density and porosity. We concluded that evident correlations exist between soil physicochemical properties and plant communities. After six years of natural restoration, the plant diversity index did not change significantly. However, the soil nutrient content decreased obviously. This study provides a reference for the management of vegetation restoration processes in forest ecosystems.

Effects of harvest intensity and shifting cultivation on soil carbon and nutrients: a case study in Sitapahar forest reserve, Bangladesh

“…activities in deeper soil(Chen et al, 2004). Moreover, deep soil has limited nutrients from litter decay, and thereby, the upper soil layer accumulates nutrients(Zhao et al, 2022). The concentration of K found in our study (0.10-0.30 cmol kg -1 ) is within the similar range (0.05-0.29 cmol kg -1 ) in AwuduaForest, Ghana observed by Appiah-Badu et al (…”

“…Removal of litters has also decreased cations of sodium (Na) in tropics (Chakravarty et al, 2019)d Na, Ca (Baul et al, 2021a). Plant diversity and soil chemical properties in natural forests were found to be positively associated, for example., N and P signi cantly affected plant diversity (Zhao et al, 2022). As plant diversity may be regulated by N, P, and K cycling through ecosystem functioning (Liu et al, 2021;Qiu et al, 2018) and pH (Yan et al, 2015) it is important to quantify how nutrient stocks may regulate plant diversity under alternative land uses for recovery of vegetation, and would there be any relationships between nutrient stocks and soil C stock.…”

“…al., 2021;Zhao et al, 2022) Agoume and Birang (2009). found a decrease in P and K concentrations with increased BD.…”

Effects of Species Mixture on Growth, Biomass of Understory Vegetation, Soil Properties, and Bacterial Diversity of Acacia cincinnata Plantation

“…Mixedspecies management is currently an important afforestation method to improve productivity and the ecological benefits of plantations, as well as to improve biodiversity [21). Reasonable mixing of species can promote stand growth due to improvement in physicochemical properties of the forest soil, such that the soil is looser with good aeration and improved nutrient availability that promotes the extension of tree roots in the soil layer [22]. In mixed-species planting management, tree growth depends on the characteristics of the species itself and interspecific belowground interaction.…”

Spatial variation patterns of vegetation and soil physicochemical properties of a typical inland riverscape on the Mongolian plateau

“…The riparian vegetation zone is the core of the riparian zone ecosystem and plays an important role in biodiversity maintenance, river water purification, and ecological revetment (Nilsson and Svedmark, 2002), and the physicochemical properties of soil, as a substrate for terrestrial plant life, are significantly related to the growth and development of wetland plant communities (Ballantine and Schneider, 2009). The relationship between soil physicochemical properties and species diversity has always been a hot topic in the field of ecology (Han et al, 2022;Zhao et al, 2022). In recent years, there have also been studies focusing on the interaction between vegetation and environmental factors (Young-Mathews et al, 2010) and the physiological ecology of vegetation in riparian zones (Haq et al, 2019), but few studies have explored the differentiation rules and formation mechanisms of wetland plant communities and soil characteristics from the perspective of river landscape.…”