Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa
Halophytes reduce soil salinity through significant shoot salt accumulation and facilitation of salt leaching. However, quantitative evidence on how Suaeda salsa L. (S. salsa) roots interact with saline soil to facilitate salt leaching remains limited. This study investigated the effects of S. salsa...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Agricultural Water Management |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425002471 |
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| author | Yanyan Wang Tongkai Guo Changyan Tian Ke Zhang Zhenyong Zhao Xiaomin Mao Wenxuan Mai |
| author_facet | Yanyan Wang Tongkai Guo Changyan Tian Ke Zhang Zhenyong Zhao Xiaomin Mao Wenxuan Mai |
| author_sort | Yanyan Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Halophytes reduce soil salinity through significant shoot salt accumulation and facilitation of salt leaching. However, quantitative evidence on how Suaeda salsa L. (S. salsa) roots interact with saline soil to facilitate salt leaching remains limited. This study investigated the effects of S. salsa planting on salt removal, soil salinity, and soil quality under four soil salinity levels (0.1 % none-saline, 0.6 % lightly saline, 1.1 % moderately saline, and 2.6 % severely saline soils) using soil column experiments. Results showed that S. salsa planting significantly reduced soil salinity in the 0–20 cm layer. In lightly to moderately saline soils (0.6 %–1.1 % salt content), above-ground Na removal accounted for 12.1 %–19.3 % of soil total Na; in severely saline soils (2.6 % salt content), this dropped to 4.3 %. Compared with bare saline soil, S. salsa planting improved soil quality through increasing total soil porosity (TSP) by 51.6 %–109.6 %, pore connectivity (PC) by 144.5 %–550.7 % in the 0–20 cm layer; enhancing saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) by 100.7 %−373.8 %, and reducing bulk density (BD) by over 4.0 % in 0–100 cm soil profile. Correlation analysis revealed that root length (RL) and root average diameter (RAD) were positively correlated with TSP, PC, connected pore numbers (CPN), and Ks but negatively correlated with BD and soil moisture (SM). Root-induced soil quality improvements promoted salt leaching in the 0–20 cm layer, achieving desalination rates of 45.5 %–54.8 % in lightly to moderately saline soils and 24.6 % in severely saline soils. Furthermore, S. salsa planting reduced topsoil salt accumulation, decreasing salinity by over 55.0 % in the 0–20 cm layer compared to uncultivated soils. Therefore, continuous cultivation of S. salsa is an effective biological strategy for remediating saline-alkali land by improving soil quality and promoting salt removal. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-33ba98dc09a0452b95029bdb80f2aae6 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1873-2283 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agricultural Water Management |
| spelling | doaj-art-33ba98dc09a0452b95029bdb80f2aae62025-08-20T03:47:34ZengElsevierAgricultural Water Management1873-22832025-06-0131410953310.1016/j.agwat.2025.109533Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsaYanyan Wang0Tongkai Guo1Changyan Tian2Ke Zhang3Zhenyong Zhao4Xiaomin Mao5Wenxuan Mai6State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, ChinaChina College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, ChinaChina College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China; Corresponding author.Halophytes reduce soil salinity through significant shoot salt accumulation and facilitation of salt leaching. However, quantitative evidence on how Suaeda salsa L. (S. salsa) roots interact with saline soil to facilitate salt leaching remains limited. This study investigated the effects of S. salsa planting on salt removal, soil salinity, and soil quality under four soil salinity levels (0.1 % none-saline, 0.6 % lightly saline, 1.1 % moderately saline, and 2.6 % severely saline soils) using soil column experiments. Results showed that S. salsa planting significantly reduced soil salinity in the 0–20 cm layer. In lightly to moderately saline soils (0.6 %–1.1 % salt content), above-ground Na removal accounted for 12.1 %–19.3 % of soil total Na; in severely saline soils (2.6 % salt content), this dropped to 4.3 %. Compared with bare saline soil, S. salsa planting improved soil quality through increasing total soil porosity (TSP) by 51.6 %–109.6 %, pore connectivity (PC) by 144.5 %–550.7 % in the 0–20 cm layer; enhancing saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) by 100.7 %−373.8 %, and reducing bulk density (BD) by over 4.0 % in 0–100 cm soil profile. Correlation analysis revealed that root length (RL) and root average diameter (RAD) were positively correlated with TSP, PC, connected pore numbers (CPN), and Ks but negatively correlated with BD and soil moisture (SM). Root-induced soil quality improvements promoted salt leaching in the 0–20 cm layer, achieving desalination rates of 45.5 %–54.8 % in lightly to moderately saline soils and 24.6 % in severely saline soils. Furthermore, S. salsa planting reduced topsoil salt accumulation, decreasing salinity by over 55.0 % in the 0–20 cm layer compared to uncultivated soils. Therefore, continuous cultivation of S. salsa is an effective biological strategy for remediating saline-alkali land by improving soil quality and promoting salt removal.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425002471HalophytePhytodesalinationSoil porosityWater-stable aggregateHydraulic conductivity |
| spellingShingle | Yanyan Wang Tongkai Guo Changyan Tian Ke Zhang Zhenyong Zhao Xiaomin Mao Wenxuan Mai Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa Agricultural Water Management Halophyte Phytodesalination Soil porosity Water-stable aggregate Hydraulic conductivity |
| title | Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa |
| title_full | Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa |
| title_fullStr | Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa |
| title_short | Effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils: A case study of Suaeda salsa |
| title_sort | effects of root growth on salt leaching and soil structure improvement in saline soils a case study of suaeda salsa |
| topic | Halophyte Phytodesalination Soil porosity Water-stable aggregate Hydraulic conductivity |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377425002471 |
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