Spatial and temporal variability of soil properties under Caragana microphylla shrubs in the northwestern Shanxi Loess Plateau, China

Shrub-induced spatial and temporal heterogeneity of soil properties is common in arid and semiarid ecosystems, and it facilitates the development of plant species diversity. We selected 5-, 10-, 20-, 30-, and 40-year-old Caragana microphylla shrubs in the Shanxi Loess Plateau to evaluate the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of soil properties under and outside the shrub canopy. In addition, the presence of adventitious plant species was investigated to assess the development of herbaceous species diversity. Soil samples were collected from two depths (0-5 cm and 5-10 cm). The establishment and development of shrubs promoted temporal variation, improved soil texture, enhanced soil organic matter (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), and cation exchange capacity (CEC), and decreased pH, bulk density (BD), and soil water content (SWC). The results further confirmed that SOM, TN, and CEC were significantly higher at the center than at the outside of the shrub canopies (P < 0.05) and were higher at the 0-5 cm depth than at the 5-10 cm depth. Moreover, the differences in SOM, TN, and CEC from the center to the outside of shrub canopies were greater under 30- and 40-year-old shrubs than under 10- and 5-year-old shrubs. Furthermore, the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of the soil properties facilitated the development of herbaceous species diversity.