Abstract: Objective To determine the different effects of various vegetation types on soil improvement on alpine sandy land, and to discuss the heterogeneity of soil improvement and the potential of different artificial forest trees. Method Based on vegetation restoration of long term monitoring experiments at sandy field forest in Shazhuyu, a village of Alpine Sandy Land. 6 vegetation plots (Salix cheilophila, Populus cathayana, Leymus secalinus, Caragana korshinskii, Hippphae rhamnoides, Tamarix chinensis) and three control plots(farmland, flowing sand land, slacks dune) were selected to analyze the soil texture, pH value, soil organic matter and total N, total P and total K properties. Result (1) After 51 years of vegetation restoration, from the viewpoint of increased proportion of clay and silt, the soil texture improvement order was Hippophae rhamnoides(206.3%)>Caragana korshinskii(108.5%)>Populus cathayana(70.5%)>Salix cheilophila(56.8%)>Leymus secalinus(54.1%)>Tamarisk chinensis (42.3%). From the viewpoint of increased proportion of total N, total P and total K, the soil nutrient improvement order was Populus cathayana(198.2%)>Caragana korshinskii(166.7%)>Hippophae rhamnoides(155.3%)>Salix cheilophila(82.6%)>Leymus secalinus(75.4%)>Tamarisk chinensis(53.9%).The soil total P contents was low, the average was only 0.42 g·kg-1. (2)After 51 years of vegetation restoration, the 030 cm soil organic matter contents of understory Caragana korshinskii, Populus cathayana, Hippophae rhamnoides, Leymus secalinus, Salix cheilophila, Tamarix chinensis were 20.19,18.25,30.81,23.57,22.13 and 10.62 g·kg-1, which increased order by 766.7%, 702.4%, 689.8%, 517.4%, 491.5% and 343.9% compared with the mobile sand dunes or interdune sandy corresponding. Conclusion With the increase of vegetation restoration time, the soil texture had been greatly improved, the soil nutrients content increased significantly, but the variability of surface soil pH was very little. With the increase of the recovery time, the difference in organic matter content of each soil layers difference was increasing, the accumulation of organic substance was becoming more and more obvious, and there was a time lag in the soil improvement effect with depth increasing. Caragana korshinskii and Hippophae rhamnoides was more suitable on planting in Alpine Sandy Land, and could take appropriately forestry management measures to achieve sustainable development in this area.