Title: Effects of fence enclosure on vegetation restoration and soil properties in Horqin sandy land
Abstract: Overgrazing generally results in vegetation degradation of grassland,and is one of the main causes leading to desertification development in Horqin Sandy Land in Northeast China.Fenc enclosure is a simple and effective measures for the restoration of degraded vegetation and the improvement of ecological environment and is widely used for this purpose in the sandy land.Caragana microphylla community is the indigenous and dominant vegetation type in the Horqin Sandy Land.The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of the fenc enclosure on vegetation and soil characteristics under the C.microphylla community.Soil seed bank,soil physical and chemical properties,and coverage and composition of vegetation in an age sequence(2-,6-,and 12-yr) of enclosed C.mirophylla lands were compared with freely grazing land.The results showed that: ①the fence enclosure significantly increase soil seed bank density.The soil seed bank density of 2-,6-,and 12-yr plots increased by 15.7%,482.5% and 728.1%,respectively,compared with the free grazing plot,.However,the Shannon-Weiner index,Simpson index and Pielou evenness of soil seed bank decreased with the age;②the fence enclosure facilitated vegetation restoration.Specifically,the density of vegetation increased by 108.0% and 239.3%,and the coverage of vegetation increased by 261.6% and 271.6% in the 6-and 12-yr plots respectively,compared with the grazing plot time(6 a) could increase species diversity,while long fencing time(11a) could decrease species diversity.③the fence enclosure increased nutrient contents(organic matter,total N and P,and available P and K) of topsoil(0-10 cm),while no significant differencs of soil moisture were found among the plots.
Publication Year: 2013
Publication Date: 2013-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 4
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