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

Runhong Liu, Yuanfang Pan, Han Bao, Shichu Liang, Yong Jiang, Hongrun Tu, Juanli Nong and Wanqing Huang
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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
Yuanfang Pan: Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, 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
Shichu Liang: Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, 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
Hongrun Tu: Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, 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
Wanqing Huang: Key Laboratory of Wild Animal and Plant Ecology of Guangxi Colleges and Universities, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541006, China

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 4, 1-16

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.

Keywords: soil physico-chemical properties; slope position; correlation analysis; hilly region; principal component analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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