Abstract:Soil salinization and low fertility are problems associated with the abandoned salt pan in the southern coastal area of Laizhou Bay. Therefore, two typical reclamation areas were the research focus of the present study, which used classical statistics and geostatistical Kriging interpolation methods to evaluate the spatial variation of soil salinity and organic matter of typical parcels at different reclamation years. The correlation between soil salinity and organic matter was analyzed, and the spatial distribution maps of soil salinity in the different soil layers and organic matter contents of the surface layer were also evaluated. The results indicated there was high soil salinity in both reclamation areas, and the levels of both areas were higher than 1g/kg. Due to the effect of reclamation years, land leveling, irrigation, and tillage methods, the soil salinity in area two was evidently lower than that in area one. Low organic matter content was also found in the two areas, which was 4.37 and 3.66g/kg in areas one and two, respectively. Both the soil salinity and organic matter showed moderate spatial variability in the horizontal direction, and the variation coefficient was in the range of 32.79%-83.83%. The correlation analysis results indicated a significant negative correlation between the soil salinity and organic matter in all soil layers; the nugget/sill ratio was less than 25% indicating a strong spatial correlation between the two parameters. The minimum autocorrelation distance was 440m, which was longer than the sampling intervals (minimum value was 160m), indicating that the sampling intervals were rational. The spatial distribution maps of the soil salinity and organic matter content obtained using the Kriging interpolation showed an apparent strip style. In area one, the soil salinity gradually reduced from the central region to the northern and southern regions. In area two, the soil salinity had the lowest value in the southeast and gradually shifted to the high-value area in the northwest. The organic matter content was lower in the central area than that in the southern and northern area in area one. However, the highest organic matter content was observed in the southeast region, whereas lower values were found in the central and northern regions in area two. The research results could provide a theoretical basis and technical support for the rational partitioning, amelioration, and utilization, as well as scientific management of saline soils in salt pan reclamation areas.