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Scientia Silvae Sinicae ›› 2026, Vol. 62 ›› Issue (4): 118-129.doi: 10.11707/j.1001-7488.LYKX20250501

• Research papers • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of Urbanization on Species Composition and Diversity of Spontaneous Plants in Beijing

Dingjie Zhao1,3,Tao Sun1,Baoquan Jia4,5,Shouhong Zhang2,3,Hang Xu2,3,Qimeng Yang6,Mingqi Sun2,3,Yawen Xue2,3,Baohua Liu2,3,Zhiqiang Zhang2,3,*()   

  1. 1. Academy of Forestry Inventory and Planning, National Forestry and Grassland Administration Beijing 100714
    2. Shanxi Jixian National Forest Ecosystem Observation and Research Station Linfen 042299
    3. School of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University Beijing 100083
    4. Research Institute of Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry Beijing 100091
    5. Key Laboratory of Tree Breeding and Cultivation, National Forestry and Grassland Administration Beijing 100091
    6. Forestry and Grassland Survey & Planning Institute of Hebei Province Shijiazhuang 050081
  • Received:2025-08-11 Online:2026-04-15 Published:2026-04-11
  • Contact: Zhiqiang Zhang E-mail:zhqzhang@bjfu.edu.cn

Abstract:

Objective: This study aims to explore the impacts of rapid urbanization, environmental factors, and cultivated plants on the species composition, spatial distribution patterns, and diversity of spontaneous plants in urban plant communities, providing crucial scientific basis for constructing low artificial maintenance, near-natural vegetation communities in urban green spaces. Method: The distance from the city center and the percentage of impervious surface area were selected as key indicators of urbanization intensity. The cross zone method was used to select 3285 spontaneous plants plots and 657 soil plots within the sixth ring road of Beijing for plant investigation and soil physicochemical property determination. Result: A total of 191 spontaneous plant species were recorded in this study, belonging to 172 genera and 61 families, including 28 trees, 16 shrubs and 147 herbs. The species composition and life form of spontaneous plants showed early regeneration and succession of the spontaneous plant communities. Meanwhile, 337 species of cultivated plants were recorded, belonging to 252 genera and 85 families. It was found that higher urbanization intensity increased spontaneous woody plant diversity, while decreased herbaceous plant diversity. In addition, spontaneous woody plant diversity was significantly positively correlated with the soil water content (P=0.043), total phosphorus (TP) (P<0.05), total nitrogen (TN) (P<0.05), and cultivated woody plants diversity (P<0.001), while not significantly correlated with green space factors. However, spontaneous herbaceous plant diversity was significantly negatively correlated with the soil TP (P<0.05), organic matter (OM) (P<0.01), the cultivated herbaceous plants diversity (P<0.01), and the intensity of disturbance in green space factors (P<0.01). Herbaceous species were able to quickly colonize and became pioneer plants under frequent human disturbance, and reduced the relying on the soil water and nutrition, such as Humulus scandens. Among the influencing factors of green space factors, soil factors and the diversity of cultivated plants, spontaneous species composition was mainly influenced by intensity of disturbance (contribution=32.1%). Conclusion: By altering the environmental factors, soil characteristics and the cultivated plants diversity in urban green spaces, the species composition and diversity of spontaneous plants can be improved in different types of urban green spaces and areas with urbanization intensity, which is conducive to increasing the resilience and sustainability of urban green space landscapes.

Key words: spontaneous plants, diversity, species composition, cultivated and spontaneous plants, urbanization

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