Soil nutrient heterogeneity highly correlates to plant growth and development of environmental quality. In order to better understand nutrient cycling, heterogeneity of soil nutrients and their driving mechanism in different land use types were summarized from 1945 to 2016. By grouping keywords indexed in the titles of articles from the data base of Web of Science, two hundred and thirty one publications related to our topics were used for analysis. Soil sampling and statistical method were compared, and spatial dependence and the impact factors for soil organic matter (SOM), Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K). The results showed that soil nutrient heterogeneity was influenced by different factors at different scales. The spatial dependence of SOM, N and P were mainly at the moderate level (48.9-59.0%) and strong level (33.3-42.2%), while for K was at strong level (63.6-84.6%) and moderate level (15.4-36.4%). This was mainly influenced by topography, soil loss, weather condition, parent material, soil type, soil texture, land use, human activities, soil moisture, mineral element, soil structure, animal and plant. These impact factors were summarized separately, and the influence of factors at different spatiotemporal scales was discussed. At the end of the review, the ideas for further research were postulated.
Growth Consequences of Soil Nutrient Heterogeneity for two Old-field Herbs,Ambrosia artemisiifoliaandPhytolacca americana, Grown Individually and in Combination
