Arid Zone Research ›› 2023, Vol. 40 ›› Issue (1): 143-151.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2023.01.15

• Ecology and Environment • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of density and plant point distribution on shelter efficiency of artificial Haloxylon ammodendron forest

NIU Danni1(),HAN Rong1,MA Rui1(),WANG Zhenting2,LIU Hujun3,WEI Linyuan3   

  1. 1. College of Forest, Gansu Agriculture University, Lanzhou 730070, Gansu, China
    2. Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu, China
    3. Gansu Desert Control Research Institute, Lanzhou 730070, Gansu, China
  • Received:2022-07-01 Revised:2022-08-06 Online:2023-01-15 Published:2023-02-24

Abstract:

This study aimed to study the shelter efficiency of Haloxylon ammodendron windbreak with different density and plant point distribution to provide scientific basis for optimizing the structure of windbreak in arid areas. With the field Haloxylon ammodendron as the prototype, windbreaks with three stand densities and four plant point distributions were designed, and their flow field and shelter efficiency were measured and analyzed by wind tunnel experiments. The corresponding label and “plant spacing × row spacing” of the windbreaks were as follows: A: 17 cm × 17 cm, B1: 34 cm × 17 cm, B2: 17 cm × 34 cm, and C: 34 cm × 34 cm. Results showed that (1) the area of wind speed deceleration region (U/U0 < 1) accounted for 78.06%, 70.41%, 74.36%, and 82.80% of the whole flow field of A, B1, B2, and C windbreaks, respectively; the area of weak wind speed region (U/U0 < 0.4) accounted for 22.46%, 0.73%, 5.91%, and 0%. (2) The higher the stand density, the lower the average wind speed under the canopy, but the faster the wind speed recovered at the leeside of windbreaks. The minimum wind speed was located at 11H, 15H, 15H, and 20H behind the A, B1, B2, and C windbreaks, respectively (H was the tree height). (3) The order of shelter efficiencies of the four windbreaks from large to small was A > B2 > B1 > C. The relationship between shelter efficiency and stand density was nonlinear. The ratio of wind reduction at the near surface was A:B:C≈6:3:2 behind the windbreaks. The density of afforestation should be determined based on the soil water carrying capacity in the practice of forestation. On this basis, the plant point distribution mode of “small plant spacing, large row spacing” should be preferred.

Key words: windbreak and sand fixation forest, Haloxylon ammodendron, density, plant point distribution, flow field, shelter efficiency, wind tunnel test