The conversion of oasis-desert ecotones for agricultural use is a recent and ongoing trend. To evaluate the impacts of different land-use types and disturbance intensities (distance from farmland) on ecotonal vegetation, we investigated the plant community structure and growth of dominant species in an oasis-desert ecotone in the southern Taklimakan Desert. We established six 100 × 100 m plots, each associated with a particular land-use type in two respective locations: farmland margins and peripheral desert. Twelve and five species, respectively, were recorded at these two sites, with the latter containing fewer annual species. Species richness in the ecotone corresponded to the size of the investigated area. Plant coverage was generally two to eight times higher in the farmland margins than in peripheral desert areas. The species richness, plant coverage, and diversity indices at the two sites varied according to the land-use type. An increased distance from farmland corresponded to changes in the community structure for some land-use types, whereas in most instances, species richness differed by only one species within 100 m of farmland. Plant density and coverage were relatively higher in subplots located 0–20 m away from farmland than in other subplots, although these differences were nonsignificant. Whereas land-use types affected some of the growth indices of the dominant species Alhagi sparsifolia, we observed few significant distance effects. These results indicate that plant community structures and the growth of dominant species vary with landscape heterogeneity or land-use type. The distance effects are dependent on the land-use type. Over a short time period, irrigation is beneficial for the establishment of annual plants around farmland, but it is not beneficial for perennial plants that use ground water. However, further assessments of the long-term effects of agricultural activities on plant community structures, especially on dominant shrubs, are needed.

绿洲荒漠过渡带用于农业的转换是最近和持续的趋势。为了评估不同土地利用类型和干扰强度（距农田的距离）对生态植物的影响，我们调查了塔克拉玛干沙漠南部绿洲-荒漠过渡带的植物群落结构和优势种的生长。我们建立了六个100×100 m的地块，每个地块分别在两个位置（农田边缘和外围沙漠）与特定的土地利用类型相关。在这两个地点分别记录了十二种和五种，而后者的年度物种较少。过渡带中的物种丰富度对应于调查区域的大小。农田边缘的植物覆盖率通常比外围沙漠地区高2至8倍。物种丰富度 这两个地点的植物覆盖率和多样性指数根据土地利用类型而异。与农田的距离增加对应于某些土地利用类型的群落结构变化，而在大多数情况下，农田100 m内物种丰富度仅相差一种。距农田0-20 m的子图样中的植物密度和覆盖率相对高于其他子图样，尽管这些差异并不显着。土地利用类型影响了优势物种的某些生长指数 距农田0-20 m的子图样中的植物密度和覆盖率相对高于其他子图样，尽管这些差异并不显着。土地利用类型影响了优势物种的某些生长指数 距农田0-20 m的子图样中的植物密度和覆盖率相对高于其他子图样，尽管这些差异并不显着。土地利用类型影响了优势物种的某些生长指数Alhagi sparsifolia，我们观察到很少的距离影响。这些结果表明，植物群落结构和优势种的生长随景观异质性或土地利用类型而变化。距离效应取决于土地利用类型。在短期内，灌溉有利于农田周围建立一年生植物，但不利于使用地下水的多年生植物。但是，需要进一步评估农业活动对植物群落结构，特别是对优势灌木的长期影响。