Abstract
AimA deeper understanding of relationships between soil and vegetation is a prerequisite for accelerating karst area vegetation restoration. Remarkable achievements have been made at regional and individual plant scales, but research on the relationship between soil and vegetation is insufficient at the hillslope catena scale in karst areas.MethodsSoils and vegetation were investigated along a toposequence (upper-, middle-, lower-slope, and depression) of a dolomite peak-cluster depression catchment.ResultsA continuous soil catena pattern was developed along the toposequence. From the top to bottom of soil catena, soil thickness, fine soil mass ratio, nutrient stocks, and epikarst thickness gradually increased, while gravel mass ratio, pH, and saturated hydraulic conductivity gradually decreased. However, nutrient contents showed no significant change trends along the soil catena. There was a strong spatial association between soil types and dominant vegetation communities. The associations were as follows: herbs associated with entisols in the upper-slope; herbs and shrubs with inceptisols in the middle-slope; shrubs with semi-alfisols in the lower-slope; and trees with alfisols in the depression. ConclusionsThe dolomite rocks displayed an evenly progressive karstification process. This led to an undeveloped underground karstic network incapable of transporting soil materials into underground. Soil materials still accumulated at different topographic positions surface and formed a continuous catena. Parameters for nutrient stock may be more suitable for assessing soil productivity and to guide vegetation restoration key factors in karst regions than nutrient content parameters.
Soil and Vegetation Patterns Along a Toposequence in a Dolomite Peak-cluster Depression Catchment
