Vegetation is an important component of the terrestrial ecosystem, and its spatio-temporal variations are determined by the interactions of various natural and human factors. Generally, climatic factors (e.g., temperature and precipitation) regulate the growth and spatial distribution patterns of vegetation across a landscape in the long term, whereas non-climatic factors, such as human activities, determine the changes in vegetation cover in the short term. The "returning farmland to lake" and "returning farmland to forest" projects implemented since 1998 have led to many ecological and environmental problems in Nanchang city. Previous studies have suggested that exploring the effects of non-climatic factors (e.g., topography and land use behavior) on vegetation cover can provide scientific bases and references for ecological and environmental monitoring in a low hilly plain region (e.g., Nanchang city). In this study, employing a dimidiate pixel model and three Landsat-5 TM images, we investigated the spatio-temporal variations in fractional vegetation cover from 2001 to 2010 in Nanchang city. The topography-adjusted vegetation index was used to derive the dimidiate pixel model. The fractional vegetation cover was calculated based on Landsat-5 TM images in 2001, 2005, and 2010. A digital elevation model (DEM) was used to investigate the effects of terrain factors on fractional vegetation cover. In addition, three periods of land use maps were used to characterize the response of fractional vegetation cover change to land use change based on the "overlap" and "zonal statistics" tools in ArcGIS. The results showed that:1) the mean values for fractional vegetation cover in Nanchang city were 0.54, 0.45, and 0.42 in 2001, 2005, and 2010, respectively. Overall, the fractional vegetation cover decreased from 2001 to 2010, and this trend was retarded after 2005. Spatially, locations with high fractional vegetation cover were clustered at the center of Nanchang city. Specifically, the fractional vegetation cover degenerated obviously in Xinjian County, Anyi County, and Jinxian County from 2001 to 2005. From 2005 to 2010, the fractional vegetation cover declined in Nanchang County, Jinxian County, and Xihu District and significantly increased in other counties, especially in Anyi County and QinShanhu and DongHu districts. 2) Relationships between fractional vegetation cover and terrain were significant. Specifically, the fractional vegetation cover was positively correlated with elevation and a slope gradient of 0-22 degrees and negatively correlated with a slope gradient of 22-40 degrees. More than 80% of the vegetation cover changes occurred in areas with an altitude of < 30 m and a slope of < 4 degrees. 3) The change in fractional vegetation cover resulted from the interactions of terrain and land use. Land use played a predominant role in altering vegetation cover, especially in the low hilly plain areas. Converting cultivated land, forest land, and grassland to developed land, abandoning cultivated land, and cutting forestland were the main causes of vegetation cover degradation (accounting for 50%). The policies of speeding up of urbanization in the low hilly plain area and the returning of farmland to forest and grassland, reclaiming land, and developing reserved land resources were the main causes for the vegetation cover increase.