Responses of plant distributions in drainage ditch banks to soil salinity in an arid agricultural irrigation region of Northwest China

In arid agricultural irrigation regions, drainage ditches are important ecotones subjected to both soil salinity and artificial drainage. To explore plant community structures under varying levels of salt stress and the long-term distribution patterns of salt-tolerant species in arid open-ditch banks, a comprehensive study of soil-plant interrelationships was conducted in 39 drainage ditches of a Yellow River irrigation area of Northwest China....