LAUSR

Urban green space could efficiently tackle surface water management issues in modern cities, especially in the Loess Plateau where the urban environment is constrained by poor soil quality as well as limited and unevenly distributed precipitation. Numerous studies based on farmland have demonstrated that organic amendments could improve soil quality and the water holding capacity by increasing soil organic matter content and aggregate stability via functions of soil microorganisms. In this case, we show that organic amendments that successfully applied in agriculture could also be served to improve the soil quality underneath the urban green space in the Loess Plateau. On the whole, organic amendments performed better than inorganic ones. Specifically, animal manure imposed the greatest beneficial effects on soil water holding capacity, soil aggregation, as well as microbial diversity and activity, followed by plant residue and mushroom residue. In contrast, polyvinyl alcohol and volcanic pumice imposed no obvious, if not negative, effect on soil properties. In conclusion, animal manure could be a good soil amendment for urban green space, especially in the arid area of the Loess Plateau or other regions with similar soil properties.