The widely distributed granite weathering crust in south China is generally composed of four layers:soil organic layer (20-50 cm),red clay layer (1-10m),sandy layer (5-10 m) and fragmental layer (10-20 m),in which the red clay layer is firmly cemented Icy clay and Fe-Al oxides and thus has a higher anti-erodibility than the underlying sandy and fragmental layers.Therefores soil erosion and conservation are quite different whether ero3ed soil possesses a red clay layer or not.By comparing conservation measures,restoration of vegetation and soil fertility,and soil development of the two types of eroded soils with conservation measures taken for 22 years,the present study reveals that when eroded soil possesses a red clay layer,soil degradation and erosion are not so serious.