[Objective] The study aimed to find an efficient and sustainable way to improve the degraded soil quality in the semiarid Loess Plateau. [Method] This study was done with three treatments： （1） the perennial legume ...[Objective] The study aimed to find an efficient and sustainable way to improve the degraded soil quality in the semiarid Loess Plateau. [Method] This study was done with three treatments： （1） the perennial legume species alfalfa （Medicago sativa L.） （AF） planted at a density of 22.5 kg/hm 2 ; （2） the biennial legume species sweetclover （Melilotus officinalis L.） （SF） planted at a density of 11.3 kg/hm 2 ; and （3） natural regeneration （NR）. [Result] It is found that NR helped improve deep soil water but with the lowest aboveground biomass. In contrast, AF has the lowest soil water content but with the highest aboveground biomass. Furthermore, in contrast to SF, NR and AF have a higher soil organic carbon and total nitrogen. However, there were no significant differences on soil total and available phosphorus, and soil microbial biomass among all the treatments. As the experiment lasts, AP decreased significantly in all treatments in comparison with their initial values at the beginning of the experiment in 2003. [Conclusion] NR was the best way to restore the deep soil water among all the treatments, and phosphorus fertilizer was necessary for the sustainable development of agricultural production. This research provides a valuable example of soil quality restoration in semiarid regions.展开更多
基金Supported by the Special Fund for Scientific Research in the Public Interest of Ministry of Agriculture(201203030)a grant from the Department of Science and Technology of Anhui Province(1206c0805033)the Special Foundation of the President of Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences for Young Scholars(11B1021)~~
文摘[Objective] The study aimed to find an efficient and sustainable way to improve the degraded soil quality in the semiarid Loess Plateau. [Method] This study was done with three treatments： （1） the perennial legume species alfalfa （Medicago sativa L.） （AF） planted at a density of 22.5 kg/hm 2 ; （2） the biennial legume species sweetclover （Melilotus officinalis L.） （SF） planted at a density of 11.3 kg/hm 2 ; and （3） natural regeneration （NR）. [Result] It is found that NR helped improve deep soil water but with the lowest aboveground biomass. In contrast, AF has the lowest soil water content but with the highest aboveground biomass. Furthermore, in contrast to SF, NR and AF have a higher soil organic carbon and total nitrogen. However, there were no significant differences on soil total and available phosphorus, and soil microbial biomass among all the treatments. As the experiment lasts, AP decreased significantly in all treatments in comparison with their initial values at the beginning of the experiment in 2003. [Conclusion] NR was the best way to restore the deep soil water among all the treatments, and phosphorus fertilizer was necessary for the sustainable development of agricultural production. This research provides a valuable example of soil quality restoration in semiarid regions.
