title: [Physicochemical and biological characteristics of coastal saline soil under different vegetation cover].
abstract: Taking seven plots of coastal saline soil under different vegetation cover in North Jiangsu as study sites, this paper studied the seasonal fluctuations of soil basic physicochemical and biological characteristics, and analyzed the relationships between these fluctuations and vegetation cover. In the test plots, there was a greater variability of soil basic physicochemical and biological characteristics. The average soil electrical conductivity was lower in crop plots (0.95 dS m(-1)) than in natural vegetation plots (2.77 dS m(-1)), but parts of the crop plots showed an increased soil electrical conductivity compared with pre-planting. Overall, the soil fertility of the plots was generally at a low level, with the hydrolysable nitrogen content averagely lower than 50 mg kg(-1), available phosphorus content (except fertilized plots) lower than 3 mg kg(-1), and organic matter content less than 1%. Due to fertilization, the soil conditions in crop plots somewhat improved. For the test coastal saline soil, its electrical conductivity and nutrient level were the key factors affecting the vegetation distribution and plant growth, and soil electrical conductivity was most important. There existed close correlations between soil nitrogen and phosphorus contents and soil microbial amount. The seasonal fluctuations of soil characteristics were closely related with vegetation type and human disturbance, being relatively stable under higher vegetation coverage and lesser human disturbance, and dramatic in bare land and castor experimental plots.
authors.affiliation: Halophyte Research Laboratory, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China. xxhdlx@163.com
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Pei
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Qin
mesh_terms: D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002681:China; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D017753:Ecosystem; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D063245:Plant Development; D012278:Ricinus / Q000254:growth & development; D054712:Salinity; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000032:analysis*; D012987:Soil / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012965:Sodium Chloride