3.2 Effects of grazing on the soil physicochemical properties
The soil physicochemical properties among five successional stages in
alpine grassland are shown in Table 1. Except for soil pH and inorganic
carbon, all soil index contents were higher in the surface layer than in
the subsurface layer. The soil water content, ammonium nitrogen, total
nitrogen, total carbon, and organic carbon were successively decreased
from GK to FB. In contrast, the inorganic carbon content increased, and
the soil quality gradually calcified. Soil nitrate, nitrogen, and
available phosphorus were highest in GK and K but showed a decreasing
trend in KT and an increasing trend in the degraded grassland.