Assessment of Soil Quality in the Transformation from Pure Chinese Fir Plantation to Mixed Broad-Leaved and Cunninghamia lanceolata Plantation in Subtropical China

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report (Previous Reviewer 2)

after the changes made the paper is

improved. a good job has been done

Moderate editing of English language required

Author Response

Dear Editor,

I would like to extend our gratitude to you and the two anonymous reviewers for providing invaluable feedback on our manuscript (MS) (ID: forests-2595151), titled " Soil quality evaluation in Converting Pure Chinese Fir Plantation to the Mixed Board-leaved and Cunninghamia lanceolata Plantation in Subtropical Region of China"

To respond to the Editor's query regarding the previous statement:

“As I previously pointed out, the study area was large of 1134 ha, but the study was conducted only in ten 20 x 30 m plots. I am afraid that the differences in soil quality is due to differences among study sites, not due to treatments. The authors need to explain the spatial position of study plots in that large study area and make sure that the differences in soil between pure and mixed species plantation was not affected by differences in spatial positions.”

Re: The total area of the farm is 1134 hectares. However, the experimental area dedicated to the 7-year-old Chinese fir plantation forests covers approximately 14.5 hectares. This particular forest patch is situated at elevations ranging from 800 to 830 meters above sea level and covers the middle and upper slopes of the forest farm. The slopes within this area vary between 20 and 28 degrees, providing the foundational context for the experimental forest. Within this demarcated area, a total of 10 sample plots have been established—5 for control purposes and 5 for interplanting mixed forest management assessment. These sample plots are instrumental in providing a representative insight into the conditions and effects being studied in this research. We have revised this paragraph in the revision.

We have thoroughly reviewed the manuscript (MS) and corrected all errors throughout the entire manuscript (MS), and have taken efforts to address every question raised by the reviewers. Additionally, we have reviewed all references pertinent to the manuscript's content. The entire MS has been carefully revised, and all changes have been marked using tracking. Furthermore, we have edited the overlapping sections of the manuscript to reduce the similarity of the content in the revised version. The revision process has led to substantial enhancements. We are hopeful that this revised version meets the requirements of the Journal of 'Forests' for publication.

Thank you very much for your time and your consideration.

Yours sincerely,

Xiaoyu Cao, PhD.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report (Previous Reviewer 3)

According to my comments, authors have made all need changes in the article. I don't have any other questions. The article may be published.

 

According to my comments, authors have made all need changes in the article. I don't have any other questions. The article may be published.

 

Author Response

Dear Editor,

I would like to extend our gratitude to you and the two anonymous reviewers for providing invaluable feedback on our manuscript (MS) (ID: forests-2595151), titled " Soil quality evaluation in Converting Pure Chinese Fir Plantation to the Mixed Board-leaved and Cunninghamia lanceolata Plantation in Subtropical Region of China"

To respond to the Editor's query regarding the previous statement:

“As I previously pointed out, the study area was large of 1134 ha, but the study was conducted only in ten 20 x 30 m plots. I am afraid that the differences in soil quality is due to differences among study sites, not due to treatments. The authors need to explain the spatial position of study plots in that large study area and make sure that the differences in soil between pure and mixed species plantation was not affected by differences in spatial positions.”

Re: The total area of the farm is 1134 hectares. However, the experimental area dedicated to the 7-year-old Chinese fir plantation forests covers approximately 14.5 hectares. This particular forest patch is situated at elevations ranging from 800 to 830 meters above sea level and covers the middle and upper slopes of the forest farm. The slopes within this area vary between 20 and 28 degrees, providing the foundational context for the experimental forest. Within this demarcated area, a total of 10 sample plots have been established—5 for control purposes and 5 for interplanting mixed forest management assessment. These sample plots are instrumental in providing a representative insight into the conditions and effects being studied in this research. We have revised this paragraph in the revision.

We have thoroughly reviewed the manuscript (MS) and corrected all errors throughout the entire manuscript (MS), and have taken efforts to address every question raised by the reviewers. Additionally, we have reviewed all references pertinent to the manuscript's content. The entire MS has been carefully revised, and all changes have been marked using tracking. Furthermore, we have edited the overlapping sections of the manuscript to reduce the similarity of the content in the revised version. The revision process has led to substantial enhancements. We are hopeful that this revised version meets the requirements of the Journal of 'Forests' for publication.

Thank you very much for your time and your consideration.

Yours sincerely,

Xiaoyu Cao, PhD.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

This manuscript is a resubmission of an earlier submission. The following is a list of the peer review reports and author responses from that submission.

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

The authors have tried to monitor the changes in SQI after converting the Chinese fir forest to a mixed plantation which is a sound research topic. However, the authors have failed to express the data in the manuscript. Moreover, due care was not taken while preparing the manuscript. 

Some of the points are-

Is 45cm soil depth enough for study in forest ecosystems? 

What is soil density? (line-173)

Total porosity- SP?? (line-173-174)

Soil dehydrogenase activity and MBC could have been done for a better representation of SQI. 

Physiological properties of soil mean? (Line-357)

Figure.3 can be split and separately can be presented for better visibility.

A complete rewrite is required to strengthen the manuscript.

With regards

 

 

Some of the sentences are not giving clear meaning and spell mistakes are there.

Reviewer 2 Report

Dear Authors,

I have reviewed the paper "Soil quality evaluation in Converting Pure Chinese Fir Plantation to the Mixed Board-leaved and Cunninghamia lanceolata Plantation in Subtropical Region of China". In my opinion the topic of this work could be interesting but I’ve a lot of doubts about it.  There are many aspects to improve, there are some important flaws and I suggest the corrections in the comments in the attached file.

 

This work appears to be too immature for a publication in a international scientific journal.

Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

moderate english review

Reviewer 3 Report

The article can be accepted for publication, but after the correction of the comments. 1 - you need to carefully check the spelling and punctuation - there are errors in the text. 2 - increase the font size in figures 1, 2, 3. 3 - In the introduction (line 24) it is necessary to give a terminological interpretation of indicators (except for pH).

The article can be accepted for publication, but after the correction of the comments. 1 - you need to carefully check the spelling and punctuation - there are errors in the text. 2 - increase the font size in figures 1, 2, 3. 3 - In the introduction (line 24) it is necessary to give a terminological interpretation of indicators (except for pH).