Changes of productivity and bearing capacity of grassland in arid zone of central Ningxia over 20 years.

[Objective] The paper was to explore the vegetation regressive succession law in arid zone of central Ningxia.[Method] Based on the survey data during 1982-2001,the grass type vegetation characteristics,grassland productivity and the quality of grass in 7 survey sites were analyzed.[Result] The grass type in arid zone of central Ningxia had changed or was changing in the last 20 years;the dominant species within communities were also replacing by other species,vegetation coverage and number of plant species within communities were continuously declined,the bearing capacity of grassland had averagely declined by 114%,and the quality of grassland seriously declined.[Conclusion] The study provided basic data for the sustainable use of typical grassland.