Effects of vegetation types on hillslope runoff-erosion and sediment yield

A expermient study was conducted to explore the effect of vegetation types on hillslope runoff, erosion, sediment yield,surface roughness and infiltration,as well as the interrelation among these elements. Results reveal that the effectiveness of vegetation regulating on hillslope runoff and sediment yield is in the folowing order:the plant root, the fully vegetated hillslope surface,the vegetation cover at the lower end of hillslope,and the vegetation cover at the upper end of hillslope. The forest-grassland regulates water storage and sediment yield through its rich root networks.Sedimentation retaining is directly achieved by the surface vegetation of grasslands.The cumulative sediment yield and the cumulative runoff are found to be exponentialy correlated.There are three stages of developing,active and stable in the development of hillslope runoff and sediment yield.The richer the vegetation coverage is,the less the surface roughness is.The result is useful for understanding of the runoff generation process at a catchment scale and provides reliable experimental in formation for the model development.