It is important to understand the effects of environmental factors on secondary forest assembly for effective afforestation and vegetation restoration. We studied 24 20 m × 20 m quadrats of natural secondary forest in the southern Taihang Mountains. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and two-way indicator hydrocarbon analysis were used to analyse the relationship between community vegetation and environmental factors. The CCA showed that 13 terrain and soil variables shared 68.17% of the total variance. The principal environmental variables, based on the most parsimonious CCA model, were (in order) elevation, soil total N, soil gravel content, slope, soil electrical conductivity, and pH. Samples were clustered into four forest types, with forest diversity affected by elevation, nutrients, and water gradients. Topographical variables affected forest assembly more than soil variables. Species diversity was evaluated using the Shannon–Wiener, Simpson’s diversity, and Pielou’s evenness indexes. The environmental factors that affected species distribution had different effects on species diversity. The vegetation-environment relationship in the southern region was different than the central region of the Taihang Mountains, and vegetation restoration was at an early stage. The terrain of the southern region, especially elevation and slope, should be considered for vegetation restoration and conservation.
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