Effects of vegetation restoration on the species composition and diversity of plant communities in the limestone mountains in northern Anhui Province

In order to assess the effect of ecological afforestation patterns on the vegetation structure and botanical composition of a typical rocky mountain area in northern Anhui Province, the vegetation community structure, species diversity, and life-form composition were surveyed and analyzed via ecological survey and mathematical analysis. The results showed that there were 54 species of plants in the present research areas, belonging to 26 families and 54 genera. The artificial mixed forest of Platycladus orientalis and Broussonetia papyrifera possessed (MFPB) 16 families and 26 species, occupying 61.5% and 48.4% of the total families and species. The shrubs Ziziphus jujuba var. spinosa and V. negundo var. cannabifolia (SZV) and the grass-shrubs Arthraxon hispidus and V. negundo var. cannabifolia (GSAV) had 32 and 33 species, respectively, which take up 59.3% and 61.1% in all species. Plant life-form composition varied in the different vegetation communities, phanphytes (Ph) was most dominant component in the artificial mixed forest of MFPB, while the second dominant one was chamaephytes (Ch) in ZV and the grass-shrub of AV. The species diversity analysis indicated that, Shannon-Wiener index and Simpson evenness index represented MFPB > SZV > GSAV, and the species richness was in the order of GFAV > SZV > MFPB. The higher value of Sörense was found between ZV and PB, as well as ZV and AV, and the AV hade the lower value of Sörensen. The distinctive landscape characteristics, anthropogenic disturbance and afforestation have important influence on the plant community assembly, diversity and life-form composition.