Vegetation characteristics, abundance of soil microbes, and soil physico-chemical properties in desertified alpine meadows of Maqu

doi:10.11686/cyxb2015134

Abstract

Abstract: In recent years, desertification has been a serious threat to the alpine meadow ecosystem in the Maqu County of Gansu Province. To evaluate the effects of desertification on alpine meadow soil and vegetation, four types of plots with different grades of desertification were established in 2012. The vegetation characteristics, soil physico-chemical properties, and abundance of soil microbes were measured and analyzed in August 2013. At the same time, the relationship between the vegetation characteristics and soil microorganisms was analyzed. The results showed that the plant diversity index, soil moisture content, soil organic matter, total nitrogen (N), and available phosphorus (P) decreased as the degree of desertification intensified, and the plant dominance index and pH value increased conversely. The deep-soil organic matter, total N, and available P showed the highest values in the lightly desertified plots. Bacteria were the most abundant soil microorganisms in all plots, followed by actinomycetes, fungi, and then nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The lightly desertified plots had the largest number of microbes. A partial correlation analysis showed that the total quantities of soil microorganisms and bacteria were negatively related to above-ground plant richness index, plant biomass, and below-ground plant biomass, but positively related to the above-ground/below-ground biomass ratio. There were significant correlations between the abundance of nitrogen-fixing bacteria and aboveground plant biomass, and between the abundance of fungi and below-ground plant biomass. The quantity of soil microorganisms was positively related to the above-ground/below-ground biomass ratio, but negatively related to all of the other measured vegetation characteristics.

JIN Hong-Xi, HE Fang-Lan, LI Chang-Long, HAN Sheng-Hui, WANG Qiang-Qiang. Vegetation characteristics, abundance of soil microbes, and soil physico-chemical properties in desertified alpine meadows of Maqu[J]. Acta Prataculturae Sinica, 2015, 24(11): 20-28.

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