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Different Responses of Soil Moisture to Different Artificial Forest Species on the Loess Plateau

Author

Listed:
  • Jing Cao

    (State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an 710061, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Yiping Chen

    (State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an 710061, China)

  • Yao Jiang

    (Xi’an Institute for Innovative Earth Environment Research, Xi’an 710061, China)

  • Jingshu Chen

    (State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an 710061, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Yuanyuan Zhang

    (State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an 710061, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Junhua Wu

    (State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an 710061, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

Abstract

The Chinese Loess Plateau has undertaken a large-scale “Grain for Green” project since 1999. Understanding how reforestation affects soil moisture is crucial for ecological construction and the region’s revegetation. In this study, soil sensors were installed to monitor the soil moisture content (SMC) and soil desiccation intensity in a 0–200 cm soil profile online during the growing season, with farmland as a control and Robinia ( R. ) pseudoacacia L., Pinus ( P. ) tabulaeformis Carr., Populus ( P. ) alba L., and Ulmus ( U. ) pumila L. were selected. The results showed that the SMC increased with soil depth, and the soil moisture storage (SMS) in the 0–200 cm soil profile was ranked as R. pseudoacacia L. (424.3 mm) < farmland (479.8 mm) < U. pumila L. (569.8 mm) < P. alba L. (583.9 mm) < P. tabulaeformis Carr. (589.8 mm). Secondly, the percentages of inefficient water and gravimetric water in soil moisture were ranked as R. pseudoacacia L. (63%) > farmland (49%) > U. pumila L. (43%) > P. alba L. (17%) > P. tabulaeformis Carr. (11%). The soil desiccation intensity of artificial forests was heavy in June, light in April and July, and no desiccation in the other months. Moderate desiccation was discovered in the 0–40 cm soil layer and mild desiccation occurred in the 40–60 cm soil layer. Additionally, the representative soil layer for SMS in farmland for P. tabulaeformis Carr., U. pumila L., and R. pseudoacacia L. was the 90 cm soil layer, and the SMS representative soil layer for P. alba L. was the 70 cm soil layer. In brief, an SMS deficit occurred after the conversion of the farmland to R. pseudoacacia L., but there was an SMS surplus after the conversion of the farmland to P. alba L., U. pumila L., and P. tabulaeformis Carr. This suggests that the artificial forest species could be optimized by introducing P. tabulaeformis Carr. instead of R. pseudoacacia L., and the degradation of R. pseudoacacia L. could be suppressed by the application of a nitrogen fertilizer. Our research demonstrated that soil moisture depletion patterns were closely related to artificial forest species, and attention should be paid to the vegetation restoration and maintenance of afforestation achievements in water-constrained arid regions in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Jing Cao & Yiping Chen & Yao Jiang & Jingshu Chen & Yuanyuan Zhang & Junhua Wu, 2023. "Different Responses of Soil Moisture to Different Artificial Forest Species on the Loess Plateau," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-17, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:19:p:14275-:d:1248792
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Huang, Ze & Liu, Yu & Qiu, Kaiyang & López-Vicente, Manuel & Shen, Weibo & Wu, Gao-Lin, 2021. "Soil-water deficit in deep soil layers results from the planted forest in a semi-arid sandy land: Implications for sustainable agroforestry water management," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 254(C).
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