TY - JOUR

T1 - Spatial variability of soil properties affected by grazing intensity in Inner Mongolia grassland

AU - Zhao, Ying

AU - Peth, Stephan

AU - Krümmelbein, Julia

AU - Horn, Rainer

AU - Wang, Zhongyan

AU - Steffens, Markus

AU - Hoffmann, Carsten

AU - Peng, Xinhua

N1 - Funding Information: The grants for this project were provided by the German Research Council (DFG) in the framework of the Interdisciplinary Research Project MAGIM (Matter fluxes in grasslands of Inner Mongolia as influenced by stocking rate), sub-project P8 (project code Ho 911/35). Dr. Angelika Kölbl is acknowledged for the manuscript revision.

PY - 2007/7/10

Y1 - 2007/7/10

N2 - Analysis of the spatial variability of soil properties is important to interpret the site-specific ecosystems not only with respect to process investigations but also to model upscaling. This paper aims to study the effects of the grazing intensity on soil physical and mechanical properties and their interactions in a Leymus chinensis steppe of the Xilin River Basin, Inner Mongolia, China. The investigated sites were subjected to five grazing intensities (ungrazed since 1979, ungrazed since 1999, winter grazing, continuous grazing and heavy grazing). Soil water content (SWC), hydraulic conductivity (K), water drop penetration time (WDPT), shear strength (SS), soil organic carbon (SOC) concentration, bulk density (BD), and soil texture were measured at a grid with 15 m sampling distance on the surface soil during the period of 2004-2005. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and geostatistics. The correlation and interaction between soil properties were analyzed by the methods of Pearson correlation, partial correlation and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that spatial distributions of soil properties could be well described by spherical or exponential models. The ranges of spatial dependence were the highest for WDPT and the lowest for SS. Grazing decreased SWC, SOC and WDPT but increased BD and SS. Multiple regression analysis showed significant correlations among SWC, K, WDPT, SOC and BD; as well as between SS and silt content. Soil compaction induced by sheep trampling, especially in the heavily grazed site, inclined to a homogenous spatial distribution of soil properties, which will possibly enhance soil vulnerability to water and nutrient loss, and consequently reduce the plant available water and thus grassland productivity.

AB - Analysis of the spatial variability of soil properties is important to interpret the site-specific ecosystems not only with respect to process investigations but also to model upscaling. This paper aims to study the effects of the grazing intensity on soil physical and mechanical properties and their interactions in a Leymus chinensis steppe of the Xilin River Basin, Inner Mongolia, China. The investigated sites were subjected to five grazing intensities (ungrazed since 1979, ungrazed since 1999, winter grazing, continuous grazing and heavy grazing). Soil water content (SWC), hydraulic conductivity (K), water drop penetration time (WDPT), shear strength (SS), soil organic carbon (SOC) concentration, bulk density (BD), and soil texture were measured at a grid with 15 m sampling distance on the surface soil during the period of 2004-2005. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and geostatistics. The correlation and interaction between soil properties were analyzed by the methods of Pearson correlation, partial correlation and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that spatial distributions of soil properties could be well described by spherical or exponential models. The ranges of spatial dependence were the highest for WDPT and the lowest for SS. Grazing decreased SWC, SOC and WDPT but increased BD and SS. Multiple regression analysis showed significant correlations among SWC, K, WDPT, SOC and BD; as well as between SS and silt content. Soil compaction induced by sheep trampling, especially in the heavily grazed site, inclined to a homogenous spatial distribution of soil properties, which will possibly enhance soil vulnerability to water and nutrient loss, and consequently reduce the plant available water and thus grassland productivity.

KW - Correlations

KW - Geostatistics

KW - Grazing intensity

KW - Soil properties

KW - Spatial variability

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34248223538&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2007.02.019

DO - 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2007.02.019

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:34248223538

VL - 205

SP - 241

EP - 254

JO - Ecological Modelling

JF - Ecological Modelling

SN - 0304-3800

IS - 1-2

ER -