Abstract:The plant’s growth, litterfall, soil bulk density, soil organic matter, pH and plant diversity were investigated in two oil shale waste dumps in Maoming, Guangdong Province. The south dump was afforested for 18 years, and the north for 3 to 5 years. The results showed that in the south dump, the standing litterfall production increased by 1.39 times, organic matter in soil at 0-20 cm depth by 52.39%, at 20-40 cm by 50%, and soil pH by 0.28 unit, as compared to the north dump. The pH in south and north dumps increased by 0.99 and 0.71 units, respectively, compared to the bare dump. The invading wild plants on the south dump amounted to 138 species in 118 genera of 48 families since oil shale waste dumping 45 years ago, and the north dump amounted to 66 species in 63 genera of 24 families since dumping 28 years ago.
