Arid Zone Research ›› 2021, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (2): 392-401.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2021.02.10

• Soil Resources • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Relationships between the physical and chemical properties of soil and the shear strength of root-soil composite systems at different soil depths in alpine grassland in the source region of the Yellow River

SHEN Ziyan1(),LIU Changyi1,HU Xiasong1(),ZHOU Linhu1,XU Tong1,LI Xilai2,LI Guorong1   

  1. 1. Department of Geological Engineering, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, Qinghai, China
    2. College of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, Qinghai, China
  • Received:2020-06-16 Revised:2020-07-21 Online:2021-03-15 Published:2021-04-25
  • Contact: Xiasong HU E-mail:924900312@qq.com;huxiasong@tsinghua.org.cn

Abstract:

The relationships between the physical and chemical properties of soil, the shear strength of the root-soil composite system, and the soil depth were investigated in the alpine grassland in Henan Country, Qinghai Province, in the source region of the Yellow River. Direct shear tests of root-soil composite systems and soil physical and chemical content tests were conducted. Five different soil depths (0-10 cm, 10-20 cm, 20-30 cm, 30-40 cm, and 40-50 cm) were selected for sampling. The results showed that the soil moisture content decreased gradually with increasing soil depth. The soil was weakly alkaline, and the soil pH increased. The content of organic matter and nutrient elements in the soil decreased with increasing soil depth. Additionally, the cohesion c value of the soil in the non-degraded grassland gradually decreased with increasing soil depth. For the degraded bare land, the cohesion c value of the soil gradually increased with increasing soil depth. According to the analysis of the gray relational method, the shear strength of the root-soil composite systems was closely related to available P (0.82), root content (0.82), and organic matter (0.76). Additionally, the shear strength was correlated with density of bare soil (0.76) and soil particle size d60 (0.74). The results of this study can be used to inform the effective prevention and control of soil erosion, shallow landslide, and other disasters caused by grassland degradation in extremely cold areas.

Key words: source region of the Yellow River, alpine meadows, root-soil composite systems, physical and chemical properties of soil, shear strength