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Variations in Soil Physico-Chemical Properties along Slope Position Gradient in Secondary Vegetation of the Hilly Region, Guilin, Southwest China

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  • Runhong Liu

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agro-ecosystems/School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China)

  • Yuanfang Pan

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

  • Han Bao

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

  • Shichu Liang

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

  • Yong Jiang

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

  • Hongrun Tu

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

  • Juanli Nong

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

  • Wanqing Huang

    (Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China
    College of Life Science, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China)

Abstract

Understanding the variation of soil physico-chemical properties along slope position gradients is essential for vegetation restoration and reconstruction, but how slope positions impact the soil physico-chemical properties in the secondary vegetation of hilly regions is poorly understood. To address these uncertainties, we examined the changes in soil physico-chemical properties and their relationships along the slope position gradient in secondary vegetation of the hilly region in Guilin, southwest China. The results showed that except for the soil water content, soil total phosphorus and soil total potassium which reached the highest value at the footslope, other soil physico-chemical properties reached the highest content in the middle slope, and most of the soil physico-chemical properties showed the lowest content in the upper slope or footslope. Moreover, Pearson’s correlation analysis revealed that there were no significant correlations between most of the soil physico-chemical properties and that the correlations between soil physico-chemical properties were not consistent across different slope positions. Additionally, the principal component analysis showed that the first 4 principal components together explained 84.32% of the total variation and might be interpreted as the change of soil total nitrogen, soil organic matter, soil available nitrogen, soil available potassium, soil water content and soil total potassium. Overall, our results strongly demonstrated that slope positions showed significant effects on most of the soil physico-chemical properties and would provide an important reference for the formulation of restoration strategies in different slope positions to facilitate vegetation restoration and reconstruction and the sustainable development of the ecological environment in the hilly region.

Suggested Citation

  • Runhong Liu & Yuanfang Pan & Han Bao & Shichu Liang & Yong Jiang & Hongrun Tu & Juanli Nong & Wanqing Huang, 2020. "Variations in Soil Physico-Chemical Properties along Slope Position Gradient in Secondary Vegetation of the Hilly Region, Guilin, Southwest China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-16, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:4:p:1303-:d:319078
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Li, Zhong-Wu & Zeng, Guang-Ming & Zhang, Hua & Yang, Bin & Jiao, Sheng, 2007. "The integrated eco-environment assessment of the red soil hilly region based on GIS—A case study in Changsha City, China," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 202(3), pages 540-546.
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    Cited by:

    1. Mohamed A. E. AbdelRahman & Yasser M. Zakarya & Mohamed M. Metwaly & Georgios Koubouris, 2020. "Deciphering Soil Spatial Variability through Geostatistics and Interpolation Techniques," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-13, December.
    2. Erika Gömöryová & Viliam Pichler & Ján Merganič & Peter Fleischer & Marián Homolák, 2022. "Changes of Soil Properties along the Altitudinal Gradients in Subarctic Mountain Landscapes of Putorana Plateau, Central Siberia," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-15, January.
    3. Mohamed S. Shokr & Mostafa. A. Abdellatif & Ahmed A. El Baroudy & Abdelrazek Elnashar & Esmat F. Ali & Abdelaziz A. Belal & Wael. Attia & Mukhtar Ahmed & Ali A. Aldosari & Zoltan Szantoi & Mohamed E. , 2021. "Development of a Spatial Model for Soil Quality Assessment under Arid and Semi-Arid Conditions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-15, March.
    4. Theophilus Atio Abalori & Wenxia Cao & Conrad Atogi-Akwoa Weobong & Wen Li & Shilin Wang & Xiuxia Deng, 2022. "Spatial Vegetation Patch Patterns and Their Relation to Environmental Factors in the Alpine Grasslands of the Qilian Mountains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-17, May.

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