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Background <p>While root systems are widely recognized as important regulators of soil hydrological processes in sandy loam grasslands, it remains debated which root diameter is most effective at enhancing soil infiltration capacity.</p> Methods <p>This study focused on two naturally restored grasslands on sandy loam soils, including species with fibrous roots (<i>Stipa bungeana Trin.</i>&#xa0;(<i>S. bungeana</i>)) and tap roots (<i>Artemisia gmelinii Web.</i>&#xa0;(<i>A. gmelinii</i>)). Land that had been abandoned for one year served as a control to evaluate relationships among root morphological traits, soil physicochemical properties and water infiltration.</p> Results <p>Soil infiltration capacity varied significantly (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.05) among different treatments, following the order of <i>S. bungeana &gt; A</i>. <i>gmelinii &gt;</i> bare land. Plant roots directly increased soil porosity thereby indirectly promoting soil infiltration, with non-capillary porosity being a significant contributor to flow within soil pores. Soil infiltration rates were positively correlated with the root length density and root surface area density of very fine roots (RLD<sub>&lt;0.5</sub>, RSAD<sub>&lt;0.5</sub>), but negatively with those of slightly fine roots (RLD<sub>0.5–2</sub>, RSAD<sub>0.5–2</sub>) and coarse roots (RLD<sub>coarse</sub>, RSAD<sub>coarse</sub>). RLD<sub>&lt;0.5</sub> was the key factor affecting soil water infiltration, followed by soil organic matter content (SOM) and total porosity (TP). The fibrous-rooted <i>S. bungeana</i> was associated with the highest soil infiltration capacity in these sandy loam grasslands.</p> Conclusion <p>These findings demonstrate that fibrous-rooted species may be a more suitable choice for restoring degraded sandy soils from perspectives of enhancing water infiltration and mitigating soil erosion.</p>

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Effects of root traits of different diameter classes on soil infiltration in naturally restored grasslands on the northern Loess Plateau

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年8月22日

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  • Fang Liu,
  • Peipei Wang,
  • Zhengchao Zhou,
  • Jun’e Liu,
  • Ning Wang

摘要

Background

While root systems are widely recognized as important regulators of soil hydrological processes in sandy loam grasslands, it remains debated which root diameter is most effective at enhancing soil infiltration capacity.

Methods

This study focused on two naturally restored grasslands on sandy loam soils, including species with fibrous roots (Stipa bungeana Trin. (S. bungeana)) and tap roots (Artemisia gmelinii Web. (A. gmelinii)). Land that had been abandoned for one year served as a control to evaluate relationships among root morphological traits, soil physicochemical properties and water infiltration.

Results

Soil infiltration capacity varied significantly (p < 0.05) among different treatments, following the order of S. bungeana > A. gmelinii > bare land. Plant roots directly increased soil porosity thereby indirectly promoting soil infiltration, with non-capillary porosity being a significant contributor to flow within soil pores. Soil infiltration rates were positively correlated with the root length density and root surface area density of very fine roots (RLD<0.5, RSAD<0.5), but negatively with those of slightly fine roots (RLD0.5–2, RSAD0.5–2) and coarse roots (RLDcoarse, RSADcoarse). RLD<0.5 was the key factor affecting soil water infiltration, followed by soil organic matter content (SOM) and total porosity (TP). The fibrous-rooted S. bungeana was associated with the highest soil infiltration capacity in these sandy loam grasslands.

Conclusion

These findings demonstrate that fibrous-rooted species may be a more suitable choice for restoring degraded sandy soils from perspectives of enhancing water infiltration and mitigating soil erosion.