Vegetation communities and soil properties along the restoration process of the Jinqianghe mine site in the Qilian Mountains, China

• Published in: Frontiers in Plant Science
• Main Authors: Xiaomei Yang, Qi Feng, Meng Zhu, Jutao Zhang, Linshan Yang, Chengqi Zhang, Zhiyang Wang, Yonglin Feng
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2024
• Subjects: alpine mining area grassland; grassland ecosystem; restoration; plant diversity; community; Qilian Mountains; Plant culture; SB1-1110; Polygonum viviparum
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2024.1358309; https://doaj.org/article/32bab2e946004113b3682063c69d8cb9

The study explores the impact of mine grassland restoration on plant communities and soil properties in alpine grasslands, a subject of significant interest due to the observed relationship between grassland changes, plant communities, and soil properties. While prior research has mainly focused on the consequences of grassland degradation on plant diversity and soil characteristics, the specific effects of varying restoration degrees in alpine mining grasslands at the regional scale remain poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, we established 15 sampling plots (0.5m×0.5m) across five different restoration degrees within alpine mining grasslands in the Qilian Mountains, China. Our objective was to assess the variations in plant diversity and soil properties along these restoration gradients. We conducted comprehensive analyses, encompassing soil properties [soil water content (SWC), available nitrogen (AN), total phosphorus (TP), nitrate nitrogen (NO3-N), ammonium nitrogen (NH4-N), total nitrogen (TN), available phosphorus (AP), soil organic carbon (SOC), nitrate nitrogen, soil pH, and electrical conductivity (EC)], plant characteristics (height, density, frequency, coverage, and aboveground biomass), and plant diversity indices (Simpson, Shannon-Wiener, Margalef, Dominance, and Evenness indexes). Our findings included the identification and collection of 18 plant species from 11 families and 16 genera across the five restoration degrees: Very Low Restoration Degree (VLRD), Low Restoration Degree (LRD), Moderate Restoration Degree (MRD), High Restoration Degree (HRD), and Natural Grassland (NGL). Notably, species like Carex duriuscula, Cyperus rotundus, and Polygonum viviparum showed signs of recovery. Principal component analysis and Pearson correlation analysis revealed that soil pH, SWC, SOC, NO3-N, and AN were the primary environmental factors influencing plant communities. Specifically, soil pH and EC decreased as restoration levels increased, while SWC, AN, TP, NH4-N, TN, AP, SOC, and NO3-N ...