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Acta Prataculturae Sinica ›› 2010, Vol. 19 ›› Issue (4): 115-121.

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Effects of elk grazing on soil physical and chemical properties of grassland on Tiane Island

ZHOU Cun-yu, FEI Yong-jun, WU Lei, YANG Chao-dong   

  1. College of Horticulture and Gardening, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China
  • Received:2009-08-06 Online:2010-08-20 Published:2010-08-20

Abstract: Grassland soil was sampled twice in the Tiane Island Nature Reserve and the physical and chemical properties had changed with different intensities of elk disturbance. In winter, soil bulk density in the heavy disturbance plot was reduced due to its lower organic matter, but in spring, soil bulk densities were not significantly affected by elk disturbance. In spring, soil moisture in the heavy disturbance plot, which had the least vegetation cover and litter layer, was the lowest of the five plots. However, the differences in soil organic matter between the five plots with different disturbance intensities were not significant, except for a few soil layers. In winter, soil total N, P, and K contents in three layers significantly increased in the heavy disturbance plot, but in spring (with more rainfall), soil total N, P, and K contents in the three layers decreased in that plot.

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