Abstract: Taking the soils of secondary shrubs and abandoned farmland in the juvenile water-level-fluctuating zone in Three Gorges Reservoir as test objects, this paper studied the characteristics of their nutrients. The nutrient contents except that of available phosphorous were higher in shrub soil than in abandoned farmland soil. The coefficient of variation of soil available phosphorus was 91%, while those of other nutrients were about 50%. No significant difference was observed in the nutrient contents with altitude change. The contents of soil total phosphorus, total potassium, available phosphorus, and available potassium in the backwater area of water-level-fluctuating zone increased rapidly, comp
ared to those in control zone. Soil nutrient contents except that of available phosphorous decreased with increasing soil depth. Due to the water back area was at its juvenile stage, no significant relationship was found between soil nutrients and soil moisture.

Key words: 23 years-located experiment, Calcareous soil, Organic matter, Total phosphorus, Available phosphorus