Abstract: In May (spring) and October (autumn), 2006, an investigation was conducted on the soil seed bank at different altitudes (3100-3920 m) and slope aspects (sunny slope, shady slope, and ridge) in the Laji Mountain of Qinghai, aimed to study the effects of slope aspect and altitude on the distribution pattern of the soil seed bank. The species life forms in the soil seed bank were similar in spring and autumn, mainly dominated by perennial herbs, followed by annual herbs, and deciduous shrub rarely appeared. The storage and species composition of the soil seed bank increased with altitude and presented a decreasing trend on the sunny slope and shady slope, but had more obvious fluctuation on the sunny slope. The storage of the soil seed bank was the minimum on the ridge. The soil seed bank in vertical direction had a diminishing pattern. The seeds were mainly distributed in 0-3 cm soil layer, followed by in 3-6 cm soil layer, and decreased gradually with increasing soil depth. The storage of the soil seed bank had seasonal dynamics, being greater in  October (seed-rain finished season) than in May (seed germination season).

Key words: vertical pattern, Hani Rice Terraces landscape, hydrogen and oxygen isotopes of spring water, elevation effect.