To clarify the relationship between surface landslide and vegetation, a case study of the "7·21" rainstorm disaster in Fuxian County, northern Shaanxi Province, was conducted. A typical small watershed in the Ziwuling forest area was selected as the research site. The study investigated the vegetation conditions and landslide characteristics and simultaneously collected soil samples (root weight, soil bulk density, and saturated water content) from different soil layers of the landslide cliff. According to different vegetation conditions (i.e., vegetation type, dominant species, root depth) and shallow landslide characteristics (i.e., erosion depth, width and length of sliding surface, landslide volume, sliding distance), 37 surface landslides were grouped into three types (A, B, and C). The dominant vegetation of types A, B, and C were mainly herbage, shrub, and arbor, respectively. The scale of the landslides was in the order of type A < B < C. The average erosion depth was 45, 63, and 96 cm, and the landslide volume was about 100-500, 300-700, and 500-1500 m³, respectively, for types A, B, and C. Some landslide materials accumulated at the bottom of the slope of types B and C slides, and some landslide materials were even deposited at the gully bed of type C. The results showed that the different types of surface landslide presented unique landslide erosion depths and that these depths were normally equal to the root depth. Moreover, landslide erosion intensity increased with vegetation root weight. Surface landslide was aggravated by vegetation and its roots. We also found that shallow landslide intensity was affected mainly by three factors, root weight, soil porosity, and soil bulk density, and that the heavy rainstorm was the triggering factor in this surface landslide erosion. However, soil porosity and soil bulk density were both affected by root weight, and a linear regression analysis indicated that only root weight made a positive contribution to landslide erosion intensity. The contribution rate of root weight to the landslide erosion intensity exceeded 80%. The shallow landslides corresponding to different vegetation types had different erosion depths and intensities. This means that vegetation and its roots not only have significant effects on shaping the erosion features of shallow landslide but also can affect the degree of landslide erosion intensity. In cases of high precipitation, especially when the precipitation is up to or higher than the critical value, vegetation and its roots will aggravate the development of landslide erosion. In related future works pertaining to soil and water conservation, the soil and water conservation effects of vegetation should be addressed when forestry measures are applied. We can reasonably allocate different types of vegetation and simultaneously supplement with other engineering measures to improve the control of soil and water loss and optimize the benefits of soil and water conservation.