Abstract: By using RS and GIS techniques and a series of indices in characterizing the dynamics of land use, the spatiotemporal characteristics of land use in Langqi Island at Minjiang Estuary in 1989, 1996 and 2005 was studied. The results showed that in 1989〖KG-*2〗-〖KG-*7〗2005, the land use types in the Island all changed, but agricultural landscape was always the main land type. The single land use dynamics of water area was the largest, which reached 785% from 1989 to 2005. The annual change rate of comprehensive land use was 190%, the cultivation rate decreased rapidly, while the forest coverage and the construction land use rate increased. The comprehensive index of land use degree in the study area decreased, which indicated that the land use type tended to be diversification.

Key words: tillage mode, soil moisture dynamics, soil fertility, yield.