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Cited by 1,225Soil erosion and sediment transportTree Root and Stability StudiesHydrology and Sediment Transport Processes

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 61 of the 62 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Impact of plant roots on the resistance of soils to erosion by water: a review

Gyssels, G., Poesen, J., Bochet, E., Li, Y.·2005·Progress in Physical Geography: Earth and Environment
DOI 10.1191/0309133305pp443ra
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Abstract

Vegetation controls soil erosion rates significantly. The decrease of water erosion rates with increasing vegetation cover is exponential. This review reveals that the decrease in water erosion rates with increasing root mass is also exponential, according to the equation SEP e b RP where SEP is a soil erosion parameter (e.g., interrill or rill erosion rates relative to erosion rates of bare topsoils without roots), RP is a root parameter (e.g., root density or root length density) and b is a constant that indicates the effectiveness of the plant roots in reducing soil erosion rates. Whatever rooting parameter is used, for splash erosion b equals zero. For interrill erosion the average b-value is 0.1195 when root density (kg m 3) is used as root parameter, and 0.0022 when root length density (km m 3) is used. For rill erosion these average b-values are 0.5930 and 0.0460, respectively. The similarity of this equation for root effects with the equation for vegetation cover effects is striking, but it is yet impossible to determine which plant element has the highest impact in reducing soil losses, due to incomparable units. Moreover, all the studies on vegetation cover effects attribute soil loss reduction to the above-ground biomass only, whereas in reality this reduction results from the combined effects of roots and canopy cover. Based on an analysis of available data it can be concluded that for splash and interrill erosion vegetation cover is the most important vegetation parameter, whereas for rill and ephemeral gully erosion plant roots are at least as important as vegetation cover.

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Crossref · 10.1191/0309133305pp443ra

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Citations

Cites

Show all 62 references

Research works printed but not linked: 29

  1. Dunne, T., 1978, Zeitschrift für Geomorphologie, Supplement Band, 29, 130
  2. Elwell, H. A., 1980, Design of safe rotational systems
  3. Esau, K., 1977, Anatomy of seed plants
  4. Fitter, A., 1996, Plant roots, the hidden half
  5. Flanagan, D. C., 1995, USDA-Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP), hillslope profile and watershed model documentation
  6. Greenway, D. R., Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Landslides, 399
  7. Kainz, M., 1989, Soil Technology Series, 1, 103
  8. Kirkby, M. J., 1987, International geomorphology 1986 II, 189
  9. Lang, R.D. 1990: The effect of cover on runoff and erosion from plots at Scone, New South Wales . MSc thesis, School of Earth Sciences, Macquarie University.
  10. Lang, R. D., 1984, Journal of the Soil Conservation Service of New South Wales, 40, 56
  11. Li, Y., 1995, Plant roots and soil anti-scourability on the Loess Plateau
  12. Li, Y., 1992, Science in China (series B), 35, 1085
  13. Li, Y., 1993, Scientia Silvae Sinicae, 29, 193
  14. Li, Y., 1991, Chinese Science Bulletin, 36, 2077
  15. Mamo, M., 2001, Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, 44, 1167
  16. Mamo, M., 2001, Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, 44, 1175
  17. Moore, T. R., 1979, Tropical Agriculture, 56, 339
  18. Osborn, B., 1954, Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 9, 70
  19. Rickson, R. J., 1988, Agriculture: erosion assessment and modelling
  20. Russell, R. S., 1977, Plant roots system: their function and interaction with soil
  21. Ryan, C., 1995, Assessment of the factors contributing to the aggregate stability and the erodibility of tropical highland soils
  22. Sakkar, A. N., 1979, The soil-plant interface
  23. Salisbury, F. B., 1992, Plant physiology
  24. Sidorchuk, A., 1998, Advances in GeoEcology, 31, 805
  25. Simon, A., Proceedings of the 7th Federal Interagency Sedimentation Conference, V47
  26. Waisel, Y., 1996, Plant roots, the hidden half
  27. Wischmeier, W. H., 1975, Estimating the soil loss equation’s cover and management factor for undisturbed areas
  28. Proceedings of the Sediment-Yield Workshop, Oxford, Mississipi, November 1972, 118-124.
  29. Ziemer, R. R., 1981, International Association of Hydrological Sciences Publication, 132, 343

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Metadata

Authors
Gyssels, G., Poesen, J., Bochet, E., & Li, Y.
Affiliations
  • KU Leuven (BE)
  • Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ES)
  • Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CN)
ORCID
Venue
Progress in Physical Geography: Earth and Environment
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2005-06
Volume
29
Issue
2
Pages
189-217
ISSN
  • 0309-1333 (ISSN-L)
  • 1477-0296
DOI
10.1191/0309133305pp443ra
OpenAlex
W2154209249
Cited by
1,225
References
62
Citations by year
2026: 99 · 2025: 85 · 2024: 94 · 2023: 93 · 2022: 124 · 2021: 94 · 2020: 95 · 2019: 76 · 2018: 75 · 2017: 51 · 2016: 49 · 2015: 49 · 2014: 57 · 2013: 41 · 2012: 26
FWCI
22.92
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations
  • Progress in Physical Geography Earth and Environment (publishedVersion)
  • DIGITAL.CSIC (Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)) (submittedVersion)
  • Lirias (KU Leuven) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil erosion and sediment transport
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Forestry › Tree Root and Stability Studies
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Earth-Surface Processes › Hydrology and Sediment Transport Processes
Keywords
plant roots, soil erosion, water erosion, root density, root length density, vegetation cover, interrill erosion, rill erosion, splash erosion, ephemeral gully erosion, soil loss, canopy cover, aboveground biomass

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