Abstract: Salt spray is one of the main factors affecting plant growth in coastal areas. This study aimed to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of salt spray deposition and its driving factors, and provide scientific basis for the selection and configuration of coastal greening plants. The experiment was conducted along the coast of the Gulei Peninsula, Fujian. The experimental sites were divided into zones with and without shelterbelts. Cylinders were used to measure salt spray deposition at a variety of distances from the shoreline. Cylinders were installed at different heights in shelterbeltfree areas to measure the salt spray deposition variation. Our results showed that salt spray deposition decreased as the distance from the shoreline increases. During the winter, salt spray deposition decreased rapidly with distance closer than 500 m from the shoreline. The rate of decrease finished at longer distances. The shelterbelt significantly reduced salt spray deposition, with a 15.4% decrease in winter. At the sites without shelterbelt, there was no significant difference in deposition among locations at different heights. Results from the principal component and redundancy analyses showed that distance from the shoreline, wind speed, and frequency of a northwest wind were key factors driving salt spray deposition. We concluded that shelterbelt construction was an effective measure to protect plants from ocean salt water vapor.

Key words: west of Taklimakan, Birkum, Populus euphratica groundwater, digital terrain model, real-time kinematic system.