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Journal of Arid Land
Journal of Arid Land  2026, Vol. 18 Issue (1): 150-166    DOI: 10.1016/j.jaridl.2026.01.001     CSTR: 32276.14.JAL.20250197
Research article     
Changes and determinants of belowground bud banks of a rhizomatous clonal plant Sophora alopecuroides L. in the desert steppe, northern China
ZHANG Dongmei1, LUO Weicheng1, KANG Jianjun1,*(), REN Heng1, GAO Jinlong2
1Linze Inland River Basin Research Station, Chinese Ecosystem Research Network, Key Laboratory of Ecological Safety and Sustainable Development in Arid Lands, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
2College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
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Abstract  

Belowground bud banks are essential for the regeneration of plant population in arid desert areas, and their response to environmental changes could reflect adaptive strategies of plants to desert habitats. However, the size and composition of belowground bud banks and their response to environmental factors in the desert steppe zone remain poorly understood, challenging desertification control efforts in arid desert areas. This study examined the density and vertical distribution of horizontal and vertical rhizome buds of a rhizomatous legume herb Sophora alopecuroides L., its population characteristics, and soil physical-chemical properties in three habitats (interdune lowland (IL), flat sandy land (FSL), and desert steppe (DS)) in a desert steppe zone, northern China. Our findings revealed that: (1) total and horizontal rhizome bud densities of S. alopecuroides differed significantly among the three habitats (P<0.05), with the largest total rhizome bud density (177 buds/m2) in IL and the smallest (63 buds/m2) in DS; (2) horizontal rhizome buds distributed in the deep soil layer were dominant in IL, while vertical rhizome buds in the top soil layer were predominant in DS; and (3) soil coarse sand, nutrient content, and population density were the primary factors affecting bud bank density of S. alopecuroides. Specifically, horizontal rhizome buds were dependent largely on soil coarse sand content, and vertical rhizome buds tended to be more related to soil organic matter content and population density. Our results indicated that horizontal rhizome buds were more important in IL with frequent aeolian disturbance, whereas vertical rhizome buds were more important in DS with abundant water and nutrient resources. The plastic responses and survival strategies of S. alopecuroides bud bank to different habitats provide valuable information for the effective implementation of desertification control measures and the management of desert steppe ecosystems.

Key words： belowground bud bank      soil coarse sand content      soil nutrient      population density      desert steppe     
Received: 01 May 2025      Published: 31 January 2026
Corresponding Authors: *KANG Jianjun (E-mail: kangjj14@lzb.ac.cn)
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ZHANG Dongmei
LUO Weicheng
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ZHANG Dongmei, LUO Weicheng, KANG Jianjun, REN Heng, GAO Jinlong. Changes and determinants of belowground bud banks of a rhizomatous clonal plant Sophora alopecuroides L. in the desert steppe, northern China. Journal of Arid Land, 2026, 18(1): 150-166.

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http://jal.xjegi.com/10.1016/j.jaridl.2026.01.001     OR     http://jal.xjegi.com/Y2026/V18/I1/150

Fig. 1 Map of the study area with sampling sites and habitat types
Fig. 2 Schematic representation of belowground rhizome bud in Sophora alopecuroides L. HR, horizontal rhizome bud; VR, vertical rhizome bud.
Fig. 3 Bud densities of HR, VR, and total rhizome bud (TR) of S. alopecuroides at the population level. IL, interdune lowland; FSL, flat sandy land; DS, desert steppe. Different lowercase letters within the same type of rhizome bud indicate significant differences among the three habitats at P<0.05 level. Bars are standard errors.
Fig. 4 Bud densities of HR, VR, and TR of S. alopecuroides at the individual level. Different lowercase letters within the same type of rhizome bud indicate significant differences among the three habitats at P<0.05 level. Bars are standard errors.
Fig. 5 Proportions of HR and VR density in the three habitats
Fig. 6 Bud densities of HR (a-c) and VR (d-f) in different soil depths in the three habitats. Bars are standard errors.
Fig. 7 Proportions of TR density in different soil depths in the three habitats
Environmental factor Parameter Habitat type F P
IL FSL DS
Vegetation
properties		 PD (buds/m2) 14±1.30a 13±0.70ab 11±0.90b 2.592 0.084
PH (cm) 37.12±1.72a 32.24±0.91b 30.42±1.43b 3.733 0.030
Soil
properties		 CS (%) 36.74±3.44a 19.69±1.94b 12.59±1.07c 17.414 <0.001
BD (g/cm3) 1.57±0.02a 1.57±0.01a 1.55±0.01a 0.368 0.694
SWC1 (0-10 cm) (%) 3.30±0.43b 3.74±0.22ab 4.67±0.43a 3.239 0.039
SWC2 (10-30 cm) (%) 6.27±1.00ab 5.65±0.34b 7.08±0.46a 3.494 0.048
EC (dS/m) 0.25±0.03a 0.10±0.00c 0.15±0.02b 15.057 <0.001
SOM (g/kg) 2.59±0.25a 2.31±0.12b 2.68±0.06a 6.091 0.037
TN (g/kg) 0.373±0.021a 0.336±0.007b 0.370±0.012a 3.671 0.041
Table 1 One-way analysis of variation (ANOVA) of vegetation and soil properties in the three habitats
Fig. 8 Redundancy analysis (RDA) for the relationship between bud densities of HR, VR, and TR of S. alopecuroides and environmental factors. The red arrows denote environmental variables, and the blue arrows denote bud types.
Environmental factor Parameter Explanatory power (%) Contribution (%) F P
Soil properties
 CS 38.20 54.90 14.900 0.002**
SOM 9.10 13.10 4.700 0.028*
EC 6.10 8.70 3.500 0.060
SWC1 (0-10 cm) 2.70 3.90 1.600 0.222
BD 0.90 1.20 0.500 0.568
SWC2 (10-30 cm) 0.50 0.70 0.300 0.750
TN 0.30 0.40 0.200 0.808
Vegetation properties PD 10.10 14.40 4.500 0.032*
PH 1.80 2.60 1.100 0.364
Table 2 Explanatory power and contribution of environmental factors to the total variation in bud density of S. alopecuroides
Bud type Environmental factor Parameter Explanatory
power (%)		 Contribution
(%)		 F P
HR Soil properties CS 57.20 75.40 32.000 0.002**
SWC2 4.70 6.20 3.300 0.086
SOM 3.50 4.70 2.700 0.108
EC 2.00 2.60 1.400 0.274
SWC1 0.40 0.50 0.300 0.638
BD 0.20 0.30 0.200 0.676
TN 0.20 0.30 0.200 0.712
Vegetation properties PD 6.10 8.00 3.800 0.066
PH 1.60 2.00 1.000 0.358
Total 75.90 100.00
VR Soil properties SOM 20.80 36.10 6.300 0.020*
SWC2 8.30 14.40 3.600 0.056
BD 5.90 10.30 2.700 0.096
EC 1.30 2.20 0.600 0.426
CS 1.10 2.00 0.500 0.542
TN 0.30 0.70 0.200 0.631
SWC1 0.10 0.20 <0.100 0.814
Vegetation properties PD 19.70 34.10 7.600 0.016*
PH <0.10 <0.10 <0.100 1.000
Total 57.50 100.00
TR Soil properties CS 33.00** 48.50 11.800 0.004**
SOM 11.50 16.90 6.000 0.026*
EC 7.20 10.60 4.300 0.062
SWC1 1.10 1.60 0.600 0.438
BD 0.30 0.50 0.200 0.678
SWC2 0.10 0.20 0.100 0.728
TN <0.10 0.10 <0.100 0.848
Vegetation properties PD 13.20 19.30 5.600 0.030*
PH 1.60 2.30 0.900 0.334
Total 68.00 100.00
Table 3 Explanatory power and contribution of environmental factors to the total variation in horizontal rhizome bud (HR), vertical rhizome bud (VR), and total rhizome bud (TR) densities of S. alopecuroides
Fig. S1 Spacer length (a), biomass (b), and biomass allocation (c) for Sophora alopecuroides L. in the three habitats. IL, interdune lowland; FSL, flat sandy land; DS, desert steppe. Lowercase letters indicate significant differences in spacer length, horizontal and vertical biomass, and biomass allocation among the three habitats at P<0.05 level, while uppercase letters indicate significant differences in total biomass (horizontal biomass+vertical biomass) among the three habitats at P<0.05 level. Bars are standard errors.
Fig. S2 Vegetation cover in the three habitats. Bars are standard errors.
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