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Chinese Agricultural Science Bulletin ›› 2026, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (15): 119-128.doi: 10.11924/j.issn.1000-6850.casb2026-0041

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Coupling Characteristics of 6 Different Plant Communities and Soil in Hulunbuir Grassland

ZHANG Junqing1(), WU Shaoyang2, ZHANG Yan2, HOU Jian2, WU Hailong1()   

  1. 1 School of Environmental Science and Safety Engineering, Tianjin University of Technology, Tianjin 300384
    2 College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083
  • Received:2026-01-20 Revised:2026-03-24 Online:2026-08-15 Published:2026-08-13

Abstract:

The Hulunbuir grassland is currently in a state of degradation due to disturbances from mining areas, climate, grazing and other factors, and its vegetation recovery is closely related to soil improvement processes. This study aims to reveal the coupling mechanism between dominant plant communities and the soil environment. 6 typical plant communities, including Cleistogenes chinensis, Potentilla fragarioides, Carex tristachya Thunb., Leymus chinensis, Vicia sepium and Potentilla chinensis Ser, were selected. A comprehensive evaluation system comprising 7 vegetation indices and 6 soil indices was constructed. The analytic hierarchy process and entropy-weight method were combined to assign weights, and a coupling-coordination model was applied for quantitative analysis. The results showed that: (1) communities differed significantly (P<0.05) in mean height, coverage, biomass and diversity indices; Carex tristachya Thunb showed the highest diversity, whereas Vicia sepium achieved the greatest coverage and biomass; (2) soil moisture, nutrient contents and physicochemical properties varied markedly among communities; (3) the plant-soil coupling-coordination degree ranged from 0.697 to 0.956, indicating an overall good coordination; Leymus chinensis and Cleistogenes chinensis reached premium synchronous coordination, whereas Carex tristachya Thunb and Vicia sepium exhibited soil-lagged coordination. In conclusion, vegetation type strongly modulates soil moisture and nutrient dynamics, while soil properties in turn shape community structure. Cleistogenes chinensis and Vicia sepium demonstrates superior plant-soil coupling performance and are recommended as priority species for ecological restoration of mining-affected grasslands in eastern Inner Mongolia.

Key words: grassland ecosystem, plant community characteristics, soil physical and chemical properties, coupling characteristics

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