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Scientia Silvae Sinicae ›› 2026, Vol. 62 ›› Issue (3): 61-73.doi: 10.11707/j.1001-7488.LYKX20250050

• Research papers • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of Understory Enrichment Planting Modes in Pure Chinese fir Forests on Soil Quality and Microbial Communities

Yuxin Hu1,2,Yihang Jiang1,Zhenhua Liu3,Guangyu Zhu4,Jianguo Zhang1,Xiongqing Zhang1,2,*()   

  1. 1. State Key Laboratory of Efficient Production of Forest Resources Key Laboratory of Tree Breeding and Cultivation of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration Research Institute of Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry Beijing 100091
    2. Collaborative Innovation Center of Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, Nanjing Forestry University Nanjing 210037
    3. Hunan Academy of Forestry Changsha 410004
    4. Central South University of Forestry and Technology Changsha 410004
  • Received:2025-02-02 Revised:2025-10-28 Online:2026-03-15 Published:2026-03-12
  • Contact: Xiongqing Zhang E-mail:xqzhang85@caf.ac.cn

Abstract:

Objective: To address ecological issues such as soil degradation caused by long-term continuous monoculture of Cunninghamia lanceolata (Chinese fir), it is necessary to establish and transform plantations into multi-layered, uneven-aged mixed forests of Chinese fir and broadleaved species to enhance the sustainability of forest ecosystems. This study evaluated changes in soil quality under different understory enrichment planting modes of native tree species, aiming to identify suitable understory enrichment planting modes and provide a scientific basis for maintaining soil health and sustainable management of Chinese fir plantations. Method: In a Chinese fir plantation established in 1998, the third thinning was conducted in 2014 (retaining an average density of 225 tree·hm–2). In 2015, four understory enrichment planting modes were conducted: a pure plantation served as the control without thinning or planting (M0), understory replanting of Phoebe bournei only (M1), understory replanting of Phoebe bournei and Taxus wallichiana var. chinensis (M2), and understory replanting of P. bournei, T. wallichiana var. chinensis, and Schima superba (M3). The proportion of Chinese fir to understory planted species was 3∶7 in all modes. In 2022, seven years after understory replanting, soil samples were collected from 0–60 cm depth to determine chemical properties, extracellular enzyme activities, and bacterial community characteristics (16S rRNA). A minimum data set (MDS) was selected to establish a soil quality index (SQI) model. Variance partitioning analysis (VPA) was used to quantify the contributions of biotic factors (enzyme activities, microbial metabolic limitations, and community structure) and abiotic factors (chemical properties and stoichiometric ratios) to soil quality. Structural equation model (SEM) was applied to analyze the relationships among “understory replanting mode–soil quality index”. Result: Compared with the pure plantation (M0), the multi-layered uneven-aged Chinese fir and broad-leaved species mixed forests (M1, M2, M3) formed by understory replanting significantly improved soil quality and microbial ecological functions. The content of key nutrients in the 0–20 cm soil layer, including total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), available nitrogen (AN), available potassium (AK), and soil organic carbon (SOC), increased by 29.87%–72.62%, with the greatest improvements observed in M2. Understory enrichment planting drove carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycling by optimizing soil enzyme activities. The soil sucrase (SUC) activity and glucosidase (GLU) activity of M1, and urease (URE) activity of M3 reached their peak in the 0–20 cm layer. In contrast, the pure plantation had higher acid phosphatase (ACP) and catalase (CAT) activities, reflecting differences in catabolic pathways. The average microbial phosphorus limitation in M2 decreased by 12.05% compared with the pure plantation. Additionally, M2 optimized nutrient utilization strategies by enhancing the relative activity of nitrogen hydrolase (RAN) in the 0–20 cm layer and alleviating microbial carbon limitation in the 40–60 cm layer. Microbial community analysis revealed that the established multi-layered uneven-aged mixed forests significantly increased the Shannon diversity index of soil microorganisms and altered the abundance of functional bacterial phyla such as Acidobacteriota and Proteobacteria. Understory enrichment planting modes indirectly affected soil quality by regulating total phosphorus (path coefficient: 0.68), nitrogen-to-phosphorus ratio (0.71), SOC (0.33), pH (0.34), nitrogen hydrolase activity (0.17), and soil microbial Shannon diversity (0.60). The SQI values of the three understory enrichment planting modes were higher than that of the pure plantation, with M2 exhibiting the highest soil quality in the 0–20 cm layer and the pure plantation showing the lowest soil quality in the 40–60 cm layer. Conclusion: Transforming pure Chinese fir plantations into multi-layered uneven-aged mixed forests by understory replanting native broadleaved species can enhance soil nutrient levels, balance stoichiometric limitations, optimize enzyme activities and microbial diversity, and improve overall soil quality. Among them, understory replanting of P. bournei and T. wallichiana var. chinensis (M2) demonstrates the most significant soil improvement effects. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the sustainable management of Chinese fir plantations.

Key words: Chinese fir plantation, Chinese fir-broadleaf mixed forest, soil quality, soil enzyme activity, soil microbial community

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