Abstract:Artificial shelterbelt is an important and effective measure for checking winds and fixing drifting sands and hence for controlling desertification. To build up windbreak forest belts in desert areas can effectively control soil erosion and promote accumulation of organic matter and clay in the soil and formation of crust at soil surface, thus fixing drifting sands and accelerating formation of aeolian sandy soil. Based on the theory of plant-soil interaction theory, an overview is presented of the effects of artificial shelterbelt on formation of aeolian sandy soil, from the aspects of the function of the aboveground parts of plants intercepting and accumulating nutrients and reducing surface soil evaporation, and the function of the underground parts of plants fixing drifting sands, decomposing organic matter and supplying nutrients. It was found from the researches in the past that during the soil forming process of aeolian sandy soil, the soil became finer in mechanical composition, lighter in bulk density, higher in soil porosity; more apparent in differentiation of soil profile structure, more in soil layer; more significant in nutrient enrichment, higher in population, species and activity of soil microbes, and higher in enzyme activity as well. In a word, with the establishment of artificial shelterbelts in desert, the aeolian sandy soil underneath altered significantly in soil properties, and developed gradually into fixed aeolian sandy soil, suggesting that windbreak forest belts and aeolian sandy soil develop synergically, which is beneficial not only to sustainable management of the forest belts, but also to control of desertification, and restoration and reestablishment of degraded ecosystems.