[Soil water resource use limit in semi-arid loess hilly area]

Taking Caragana korshinskii as test object, and by using neutron probe, a long term observation was conducted on the soil water and plant growth during the process of vegetation restoration in semi-arid loess hilly area. The results showed that after seeding on waste land, the capability of plant community in conserving soil and water was promoted with time, with the depth of roots to absorb and use soil water increased and the soil water content reduced. Then, the dried soil layer appeared, and its deepness and thickness increased with increasing plant age. Therefore, the plant use of soil water had a limit, soil water resource use limit, i.e., the soil water storage when the deepness of dried soil layer was equal to the largest depth that rain could recharge. In the C. korshinskii woodland in semi-arid loess hilly area, the soil water resource use limit in 0-290 cm layer was 249.4 mm. When the soil water storage in woodland was close or equal to the soil water resource use limit, effective measures should be taken to decrease soil evapotranspiration or increase soil water supply to ensure the sustainable water use of plant roots.