Effect of different microhabitats and stand age on survival of introduced sand-fixing plants

Survival of 24 cultivated, non-native sand-fixing plant species in the shifting sand dunes was studied. The effect of stand age on survival of Caragana korshinskii and Hedysarum scoparium did not show any significance, but the survival of Artemisia ordosica differed significantly among different stand ages. The results of variance analyses suggested that 21 species performed significant difference among the three microhabitats. Twelve plant species performed higher survival rate and survival frequency on the dune crest, five species on the dune plinth and 11 species in the dune valley. These results are meaningful for establishing artificial sand-fixing vegetation on the mobile sand land. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd.