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Publication characteristics, topic trends and knowledge domains of karst ecological restoration: a bibliometric and knowledge mapping analysis from 1991 to 2021

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Abstract

Aims

Karst ecological restoration (KER) publication characteristics, topic trends, and knowledge domains were analysed to provide a global perspective.

Methods

Bibliometric and knowledge map analyses were used to analyse KER documents (319) in the WoSCC. The whole period was divided into the germination (GP), slow growth (SGP) and rapid growth (RGP) periods based on the number of annual publications (NAP).

Results

(1) The NAP increased over time, with China contributing the most. (2) The study topics varied and flourished over time. Plant was the most studied class and Animal the least studied in the Biology category. In the Environment category, Water was the most studied medium in the GP, while Soil was the most studied in the SGP and RGP. Remote sensing and Model were the leading methods in the SGP and RGP; Field investigation and/or experimental methods, including Leaf traits, Vegetation investigation, and Chlorophyll fluorescence, were the main methods in the GP. Ecological engineering was the leading restoration method overall. Planting pattern was a new restoration method in the SGP, while Biochar, Seed bank, and Soil translocation were new methods in the RGP. (3) Eleven knowledge domains and 10 vital documents well support studies on KER. Future research directions are proposed.

Conclusions

The results provide a new, global, objective perspective for understanding KER research over the past 3 decades.

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Notes

  1. LLR is the abbreviation of log-likelihood ratio and it is an algorithm for calculating similarity. In CiteSpace, through this algorithm, noun phrases can be extracted from the title (T), the keyword (K), or the abstract (A) of the citing articles to name the cluster.

  2. The full name of the ‘Tenth Five-year Plan’ is ‘Outline of the Tenth Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development of the People’s Republic of China’. This outline pointed out that promoting the comprehensive control and restoration of rocky desertification in Southwest China has become a national strategic goal.

Abbreviations

BC:

Burst citation

BS:

Burst strength

BTC:

Betweenness centrality

CF:

Cited/Citation frequency

GIS:

Geographic information system

GP:

Germination period

GPS:

Global positioning system

ISI:

Institute for scientific information

KER:

Karst ecological restoration

krd:

Karst rocky desertification

LBY:

Look-back years

LLR:

Log-likelihood ratio

LRF:

Link retaining factor

MC:

Most cited

NAP:

Annual publication

NDVI:

Normalized difference vegetation index

PLFAs:

Phospholipid fatty acids

PGPR:

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria

RD:

Rocky desertification

RGP:

Rapid growth period

SGP:

Slow growth period

skf:

Shallow karst fissure

SOC:

Soil organic carbon

TWF:

Theme word frequency

WoS:

Web of Science

WoSCC:

Web of Science Core Collection

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Acknowledgements

This project was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41967019), Guangxi Key Research and Development Program (AB21220057), Special Project of Science and Technology Base and Talents in Guangxi Province (GuikeAD20159055) and Scientific Research Basic Ability Improvement Project for Young and Middle-aged University Teachers in Guangxi Province (2020KY02027).

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Liu, K., Guan, X., Li, G. et al. Publication characteristics, topic trends and knowledge domains of karst ecological restoration: a bibliometric and knowledge mapping analysis from 1991 to 2021. Plant Soil 475, 169–189 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-022-05345-0

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