Plant community characteristics and functional traits as drivers of soil erodibility mitigation along a land degradation gradient

Abstract Plant community characteristics and functional traits may respond to soil erosion due to their high plasticity in varied environments. However, the linkages between plant functional traits and soil properties under erosion stress remain poorly understood, despite the fundamental role they play in controlling soil erosion. Here, we selected 50 plots on degraded land caused by long‐term water erosion representing three degrees of erosion that differed in terms of soil profile and erosion landform. We measured aboveground plant characteristics, root functional traits, and soil properties to explore their responses to the degree of erosion and to identify the main factors mitigating soil erodibility ( K r ). The results showed that vegetation cover and root length density (RLD) were the plant variables that were most sensitive to the erosion stress. Topographic parameters strongly affected plant community characteristics (vegetation cover and litter mass) by favouring thicker soil layers and lower bulk densities, and soil texture strongly affected root functional traits (root mass density [RD] and RLD) by favoring lighter soils. Importantly, plant community characteristics and root functional traits were the main drivers of K r mitigation through their mediation effects on a range of soil properties (e.g., soil organic matter, aggregate stability, and shear strength) during the restoration, and vegetation can still be efficient in maintaining and restoring soil functions, even on severely degraded land. Overall, these findings could guide restoration practices to meet soil conservation and ecosystem function goals in degraded ecosystems.