Contribution of Herbaceous Plants and Their Status and Role in Soil and Water Ecosystem

In this paper,the contemporary understanding process of herbaceous plants and their contributions are elaborated.The systematic idea of"mountain,river,forest,field,lake,and grass are a community of life"has led the grass to enter a new era of development.Broadly speaking,vegetation includes grassland,forest,crop,garden,etc.,while herbaceous vegetation is the most widely distributed on earth.From the macro and micro perspectives of soil and water ecology,this paper discusses the position and role of herbaceous vegetation in the earth's soil and water ecosystem,especially the fundamental position in mountain,river,forest,field,lake,grass and sand.Starting from the concept of soil and water ecology,the integrated protection and systematic management of mountain,river,forest,field,lake,grassland,and sand is proposed.Essentially,it is the protection and management of soil and water ecology,which summarizes various ecological systems on earth.The successful application of herbaceous plants in ecological restoration projects of mine has further enriched and developed the theory of soil and water ecology.

Niche Characteristics of Herbaceous Plants under Pinus tabuliformis Plantation Forest in Feldspathic Sandstone Area

[Objectives] To explore the niche characteristics of herbaceous plants under Pinus tabuliformis plantation forest in the feldspathic sandstone area,and to provide basic data for maintaining biodiversity and community stability in the local P.tabuliformis plantation forest.[Methods] The types,quantity,average plant height,and coverage of various herbaceous plants were recorded by field survey in a well-growing P.tabulaeformis forest area.Based on the survey data,Shannon and Levins niche breadth index,Levins niche overlap index and ecological response were used to analyze the niche characteristics of herbaceous plants under P.tabulaeformis plantation forest.[Results]( i) There were 35 species of herbaceous plants in the P.tabulaeformis plantation forest in the feldspathic sandstone area.Among them,Stipa bungeiensis had the largest niche breadth indexes with better performance.Because of its strong adaptability,its community was in an obviously advantageous position.( ii) The overall niche width and niche overlap index were generally not high,and understory herb species showed differentiation.( iii) Among the understory herbaceous species,37.15% of the species were developed species,and 62.86% of the species were declining species.Among the 14 dominant species,11 were developmental species.The species with largest the resource occupancy were S.bungeiensis( 0.188 5),Heteropappus altaicus( 0.053 1),and Cleistogenes squarrosa( 0.037 9).[Conclusions] Competition among under herbaceous plants in P.tabulaeformis plantation forest in the feldspathic sandstone area was weak,and the community species had poor utilization of resources and environment.Most of the dominant herbaceous species were in the developing stage,indicating that the P.tabulaeformis plantation community tends to be relatively stable at the current stage.

Relationship between heavy metal concentrations of herbaceous plants and soils at four Pb-Zn mining sites in Yunnan,China

This paper studied the relationship between heavy metal concentrations of herbaceous plants and soils at four Pb-Zn mining sites in Yunnan,China.50 herbaceous plant samples of 9 plant species from 4 families and 50 soil samples were collected and then ana1yzed for the tota1 concentrations of Pb,Cd,and Zn.The results showed that the average concentrations of Pb,Cd,and Zn in soil samples were 3772.83,168.81,and 5385.65 mg/kg,respectively.The average concentrations of Pb,Cd,and Zn were 395.68,28.14,and 1664.20 mg/kg in the shoots,and 924.12,57.25,and 1778.75 mg/kg in the roots,respectively.Heterospecific plants at the same site and conspecific plants at various sites had different average levels of Pb,Cd,and Zn,both in the shoots and the roots.Enrichment coefficients of Pb,Cd,and Zn were greater than 1 in 2,3,and 9 herbaceous plant samples,respectively.Translocation factors of Pb,Cd,and Zn were greater than 1 in 10,17,and 25 herbaceous plant samples,respectively.In all 50 samples,the concentrations of Pb,Cd,and Zn between the shoots and the roots,the shoots,and the soils,and the roots and the soils had significant positive relationships.

Physiological responses of four herbaceous plants to aluminum stress in South China

Different plants have physiological responses under Al stress,but there is no systematic study to examine physiological responses of herbaceous plants under Al stress.The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of Al on physiological characteristics of four herbaceous plants,which distributed in red soil area in South China,and to analyze the differences in physiological responses to Al stress between the four herbaceous plants.Four herbaceous plants(Pharbitis nil,Cassia occidentlis,Echinochloa colonum and Aeschynomene indica)were used,and the seed germi-nation percentage,the contents of chlorophyll,proline,and malondialdehyde(MDA),membrane permeability(MP),soluble sugar,and activities of peroxides(POD)and cata-lase(CAT)in leaves under five Al^(3+)treatments(0,80,400,2000,and 10000 mg/L)were assayed with the sand culture method.The results showed remarkable effects of Al^(3+)on physiological characteristics of these four herbaceous plants.The seeds of all the four species could not germinate at 10000 mg/L,and the growth of all plants were retarded under the 2000 mg/L Al^(3+)treatment.Compared with the control,2000 mg/L Al^(3+)significantly(P<0.05)reduced the con-tents of chlorophyll a and chlorophyll a+b,and increased the contents of MDA and MP.The content of proline in-creased very significantly(P<0.01)and activities of POD and CAT were depressed.The contents of MDA and MP in leaves of P.nil and A.indica decreased,and the activities of POD and CAT in leaves of the two plants increased under 80 mg/L and 400 mg/L.However,the changes in C.occidentlis leaves were opposite to those of the above two plants.The changes in leaves of E.colonum were similar to those of P.nil and A.indica at 80 mg/L,but were opposite to those at 400 mg/L Al^(3+).It is suggested that plants with higher ac-tivities of POD and CAT,more contents of chlorophyll and proline,and lower contents of MDA and MP consequently improve the tolerance to Al stress under low and middle Al treatments.

Effect of thinning intensity on understory herbaceous diversity and biomass in mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forests of Changbai Mountain

Background:Herbs are an important part of the forest ecosystem,and their diversity and biomass can reflect the restoration of vegetation after forest thinning disturbances.Based on the near-mature secondary coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forest in Jilin Province Forestry Experimental Zone,this study analyzed seasonal changes of species diversity and biomass of the understory herb layer after different intensities of thinning.Results:The results showed that although the composition of herbaceous species and the ranking of importance values were affected by thinning intensity,they were mainly determined by seasonal changes.Across the entire growing season,the species with the highest importance values in thinning treatments included Carex pilosa,Aegopodium alpestre,Meehania urticifolia,and Filipendula palmata,which dominated the herb layer of the coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forest.The number of species,Margalef index,Shannon-Wiener index and Simpson index all had their highest values in May,and gradually decreased with months.Pielou index was roughly inverted“N”throughout the growing season.Thinning did not increase the species diversity.Thinning can promote the total biomass,above-and below-ground biomass.The number of plants per unit area and coverage were related to the total biomass,above-and below-ground biomass.The average height had a significantly positive correlation with herb biomass in May but not in July.However,it exerted a significantly negative correlation with herb biomass in September.The biomass in the same month increased with increasing thinning intensity.Total herb biomass,above-and below-ground biomass showed positive correlations with Shannon-Winner index,Simpson index and Pielou evenness index in May.Conclusions:Thinning mainly changed the light environment in the forest,which would improve the plant diversity and biomass of herb layer in a short time.And different thinning intensity had different effects on the diversity of understory herb layer.The findings provide theoretical basis and reference for reasonable thinning and tending in coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forests.

Impact factors identification of spatial heterogeneity of herbaceous plant diversity on five southern islands of Miaodao Archipelago in North China

Herbaceous plants are widely distributed on islands and where they exhibit spatial heterogeneity.Accurately identifying the impact factors that drive spatial heterogeneity can reveal typical island biodiversity patterns.Five southern islands in the Miaodao Archipelago,North China were studied herein.The spatial distribution of herbaceous plant diversity on these islands was analyzed,and the impact factors and their degree of impact on spatial heterogeneity were identified using CCA ordination and ANOVA.The results reveal 114 herbaceous plant species,belonging to 94 genera from 34 families in the50 plots sampled.The total species numbers on different islands were significantly positively correlated with island area,and the average a diversity was correlated with human activities,while the(3 diversity among islands was more affected by island area than mutual distances.Spatial heterogeneity within islands indicated that the diversities were generally high in areas with higher altitude,slope,total nitrogen,total carbon,and canopy density,and lower moisture content,pH,total phosphorus,total potassium,and aspect.Among the environmental factors,pH,canopy density,total K,total P,moisture content,altitude,and slope had significant gross effects,but only canopy density exhibited a significant net effect.Terrain affected diversity by restricting plantation,plantation in turn influenced soil properties and the two together affected diversity.Therefore,plantation was ultimately the fundamental driving factor for spatial heterogeneity in herbaceous plant diversity on the five islands.

Different strategies in biomass allocation across elevation in two Gentiana plants on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, China

Patterns of biomass allocation among organs in plants are important because they influence many growth processes.The Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau(YGP)is considered to be one of the most sensitive areas in China to climate changes,but we know little about how current climatic gradients on the plateau influence plant biomass allocation.Gentiana rigescens and G.rhodantha,on the YGP,are important species because they are used in traditional Chinese medicines.We therefore analyzed the biomass allocation patterns of the two species across an elevation gradient(1000–2810 m a.s.l.)on the YGP to understand and predict the impact of climate change on these plant species.We found that the total biomass,reproductive biomass,vegetative biomass,aboveground biomass,and belowground biomass in G.rigescens were all significantly larger than those in G.rhodantha(p<0.05).However,for both species the aboveground biomass was nearly isometrically related to belowground biomass,regardless of elevation,mean annual temperature(MAT)ranging from 8.4℃t to 18.8℃t,and mean annual precipitation(MAP)ranging from 681 to 1327 mm,while the reproductive biomass was allometrically related to vegetative biomass.Intriguingly,there was a significant positive relationship(p<0.05)between the slope of the allometric scaling of reproductive and vegetative biomass and elevation among G.rigescens populations,i.e.plants growing at high elevationsallocate proportionately more biomass to reproduction at larger sizes and less at smaller sizes than plants growing at lower elevations.However,for G.rhodantha the reproductive allocation was negatively correlated with latitude.The results suggested different strategies in reproductive allocation in the two Gentiana plants on the YGP.Further studies are needed to investigate other environmental factors,such as nutrients and light,and genetic factors,in order to understand the trend of reproductive allometry along the environmental gradients.Our study has implications for the management and conservation practices of the two Gentiana species.

Herbaceous Cultivation Test of Mulberry in Sichuan Sericultural Area

With Guiteyou 2 as the test mulberry variety, mulberry herbaceous cultivation field was established at the planting densities of 60 000,90 000 and 120 000 plants/hm2, respectively. Hybrid mulberry herbaceous cultivation test was conducted, with Tongxiangqing mulberry field of mid-fist-form at conventional planting density of 4 995 plants/hm2 as the control. The results showed that the leaf yield of herbaceous cultivation mulberry was closely related to the planting density. With the increasing planting density, the leaf yield per plant was decreasing, but the leaf yield per unit area of mulberry field was increasing. The annual leaf yield per unit area in the mulberry field with the average planting density of 120 000 plants/hm2 was 37 560 kg/hm2, 2.14 times of that of the control field. The moisture content of mulberry leaf in herbaceous cultivation field was 4.74% higher than the control; the contents of crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and crude ash were 1.264%, 0.014%, 0.744% and 0.002%lower than the control, respectively. Comparison of leaf rearing with herbaceous cultivation mulberry and control mulberry showed that there was no significant difference in growth status of silkworm. The cocoon weight, cocoon shell weight, cocoon yield per 10 000 larvae, cocoon filament length and non-broken filament length of Chuanshan × Shushui were 12.81%, 14.29%, 13.85%, 5.95% and 7.68% lower than the control, respectively; but the percentage of common cocoons was 0.16% higher than the control; the cleanness and neatness were 0.2 and 1.25 points higher than the control;the filament size was 0.196 dtex lower than the control. The cocoon weight, cocoon shell weight, cocoon yield per 10 000 larvae, cocoon filament length and non-broken filament length of Jingsong × Haoyue were 11.06%, 10.20%, 11.53%, 9.46% and 9.03% lower than the control, respectively;but the percentage of common cocoons was 1.77% higher than the control; the cleanness and neatness were 0.12 and 2.50 points higher the control;and the filament size was 0.196 dtex lower than the control.

Changes in species composition, diversity and biomass of herbaceous plant traits due to N amendment in a dry tropical environment of India

Aim European and North american studies have suggested that nitrogen(N)depositions reduce plant diversity and increase primary pro-ductivity due to changes in plant traits.To predict the vegetation response to future global change,experimental validations from other regions are widely needed.We assessed the effects of N treat-ment by urea fertilization on the diversity and biomass of the her-baceous plant traits(HPTs)in a dry tropical environment of India.Methods Diversity and biomass of different HPTs were determined on the basis of data collected in year 2010,from 135,1 m×1 m plots dis-tributed over 15 locations.The plots were treated with urea fertilizer in different doses(Control,60 kgNha−1 yr−1 and 120 kg N ha−1yr−1)since 1st January 2007.The plots were ordinated and data were subjected to appropriate statistical analyses.Important Findings Correspondence analysis(Ca)suggested uniqueness of species composition due to N amendment.species number and biomass of the trait categories varied due to N fertilization and traits.all studied trait categories(except N-fixers)yielded maximum mean species number at moderate level of N fertilization.Different levels of N fer-tilization exhibited different species diversity-primary productivity(D-P)relationships.Further,study showed reduction in plant diver-sity due to increase in biomass at high rates of N addition.Conclusions Tall,erect,non N-fixers,annuals,grasses HPTs were favoured by N enrichment.N dose above 60 kg enhanced the biomass of fast grow-ing,erect,annuals,non N-fixers,nitrophilic HPTs.The changes in traits with N addition,especially the increase in annuals and grasses and decrease in typically N-rich N-fixers,have implications for sus-tainable cattle production.

Phylogenetic structure and phylogenetic diversity of angiosperm assemblages in forests along an elevational gradient in Changbaishan,

Aims Understanding what drives the variation in species composition and diversity among local communities can provide insights into the mechanisms of community assembly.Because ecological traits are often thought to be phylogenetically conserved,there should be patterns in phylogenetic structure and phylogenetic diversity in local communities along ecological gradients.We investigate potential patterns in angiosperm assemblages along an elevational gradient with a steep ecological gradient in Changbaishan,China.Methods We used 13 angiosperm assemblages in forest plots(32×32 m)distributed along an elevational gradient from 720 to 1900 m above sea level.We used Faith’s phylogenetic diversity metric to quantify the phylogenetic alpha diversity of each forest plot,used the net relatedness index to quantify the degree of phylogenetic relatedness among angiosperm species within each forest plot and used a phylogenetic dissimilarity index to quantify phylogenetic beta diversity among forest plots.We related the measures of phylogenetic structure and phylogenetic diversity to environmental(climatic and edaphic)factors.Important Findings Our study showed that angiosperm assemblages tended to be more phylogenetically clustered at higher elevations in Changbaishan.This finding is consistent with the prediction of the phylogenetic niche conservatism hypothesis,which highlights the role of niche constraints in governing the phylogenetic structure of assemblages.Our study also showed that woody assemblages differ from herbaceous assemblages in several major aspects.First,phylogenetic clustering dominated in woody assemblages,whereas phylogenetic overdispersion dominated in herbaceous assemblages;second,patterns in phylogenetic relatedness along the elevational and temperature gradients of Changbaishan were stronger for woody assemblages than for herbaceous assemblages;third,environmental variables explained much more variations in phylogenetic relatedness,phylogenetic alpha diversity and phylogenetic beta diversity for woody assemblages than for herbaceous assemblages.

Infectivity of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in Naturally Regenerating,Unmanaged and Clear-Cut Beech Forests

Clear-cutting, a management practice applied to many beech forests in the North of Spain, modifies microclimate and, consequently, the composition of the understory plant community in the disturbed areas. The objectives of this study were to assess if changes in the understory vegetation caused by altered light microclimate after clear-cutting affect the infectivity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi （AMF） on herbaceous plant species in beech （Fagus sylvatica L.） forests naturally regenerating from clear-cutting and to test if the use of bioassays for studying the infectivity of native AMF could provide useful information to improve the management of clear-cut areas. Three nearby beech forests in northwest Navarra, Spain, a region in the northwest part of the Pyrenees, were selected： an unmanaged forest, a forest clear-cut in 1996, and another forest clear-cut in 2001. High stem density in the forest clear-cut in 1996 （44 000 trees ha-1） attenuated photosynthetic active radiation （PAR） and impaired the growth of herbaceous species within the ecosystem. The percentage of AMF colonization of plants in bioassays performed on soil samples collected from the forest clear-cut in 1996 was always lower than 10S. In the forest clear-cut in 2001, where soil was covered by perennial grasses, PAR was high and the infectivity of native AMF achieved minimum values in spring and autumn and a maximum value in summer. In contrast, the infectivity of native AMF in the unmanaged forest remained similar across the seasons. Our results demonstrated that changes in the composition of understory vegetation within beech forests strongly affected the infectivity of native AMF in clear-cut areas and suggested that the assessment of the infectivity of native AMF through bioassays could provide helpful information for planning either the removal of overstory when the tree density is so high that it impairs the correct development of herbaceous species or the plantation of new seedlings when high light intensity negatively affects the establishment of shade species.

Mechanical interaction between roots and soil mass in slope vegetation

The most basic function of slope vegetation is to strengthen rock and soil mass through plant roots which increase the shear strength of the slope markedly and thereby increase the stability of the slope. However, the calculation of the reinforcement ability of slope vegetation still remains at the stage of judging by experience, because it is rather difficult due to the intricacy and volatility of the force condition of plant roots in rock and soil medium. Although some scholars have tried to study the interaction between plant roots and soil mass, the systemic analysis of the mechanical reinforcement mechanism and the contribution of plant roots to strengthening the rock and soil mass on the surface of the slope is untapped. In this paper, by analyzing the mechanism of slope vegetation and the corresponding reinforcement effect, the effects that slope vegetation generates on the shear strength of slope soil mass are studied, thereby a theoretical basis for plant protection designing is provided.