In order to explore the optimal measures for restoring the degraded alpine meadows, a combination of field investigation and indoor potting experiments was carried out to investigate the composition and texture of differently degraded patches, and compare their differences and changes in aboveground biomass and soil properties in the Source Zone of the Yellow River. This study elucidates the formation mechanism of bare patches and identifies the key factors limiting the successful restoration of alpine meadow bare patches. The results show that healthy meadows comprised primarily soil particles, plant roots, and stony materials. The proportion (unit mass) of these components follows the descending order of soil particles (0.65±0.013), roots (0.11±0.003), and stones (0.02±0.001). In terms of the proportion of unit volume, the descending order of the three components changes to roots (0.62±0.003), soil particles (0.30±0.004), and stones (0.06±0.002). There is no significant difference in soil texture (sand, silt, and clay) among differently degraded patches (P > 0.05). Fragmentation of alpine meadows results in the death of grass roots and the natural settling of fine soil particles to form bare patches. Mechanical compression of bare patch soil in indoor pots significantly increased plant aboveground biomass (P < 0.05). Soil moisture, water storage, bulk density, conductivity, soil compaction, cohesion, and root-soil composite shear strength increased significantly with the increasing compression intensity (P < 0.05). Soil moisture was identified as the key factor limiting the successful restoration of differently degraded alpine meadow patches formed by plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) disturbance. Bare patches' ability to retain soil moisture significantly increased after soil compression (P < 0.05). The results of this study showed that the best strategies of restoring differently degraded bare patches were manually fertilizing the soil with organic fertilizers and seeding graminoid grasses, followed by the effective compression of the soil to a depth of 10-15 cm. These treatments ensured that the seeded forage grasses were able to germinate and grow to seedlings successfully, with the best plant conditions.