Objective Soil physical quality is a key component of soil quality. A comprehensive analysis of the changes in soil physical properties under different land-use practices, along with the identification of their variation patterns and key influencing factors, can provide valuable insights into how shifts in land-use practices affect the evolution of soil quality.

Methods The study focused on the surface (0-15 cm) and subsurface (15-30 cm) soil layers from seven sampling sites across four land use patterns in the Zhifanggou watershed of the Loess Plateau: cropland (millet, potato, and maize), orchard land (orchard), grassland (fallow and miscanthus), and forestland (black locust).The soil erodibility factor was calculated using EPIC model and corresponding conversion formula, while the high energy moisture characteristic method was applied to obtain the soil physical quality index ratio under different land use patterns, which was used to characterize the variations in soil physical quality.

Results The surface soil physical quality index ratios were as follows: maize (0.70) < potato (0.71) < millet (0.74) < orchard (0.75) < fallow (0.76) < black locust (0.84) < miscanthus (0.85). For the subsurface soil, the physical quality index ratios were in the order: orchard (0.59) < maize (0.61) < millet (0.62) < fallow (0.63) < potato (0.64) < miscanthus (0.73) < black locust (0.78). The surface soil erodibility K-value was lower than that of the subsurface soil, with the lowest erodibility found in both the surface and subsurface layers of forestland (black locust) (0.1968 and 0.2010), while cropland exhibited relatively higher values. The soil physical quality index ratio was significantly negatively correlated with the erodibility factor K-value (P < 0.05). Organic carbon had a significant impact on both soil physical quality and soil erodibility (P < 0.05). The cumulative contribution of soil electrical conductivity and organic carbon to the changes in soil physical quality reached 86.2%.

Conclusion The surface soil exhibits better physical quality and erosion resistance compared to the subsurface layer. Soils in miscanthus grassland and black locust forest are significantly superior in physical quality compared to other land use patterns, forestland soils have the strongest erosion resistance. The change of soil physical quality can characterize the change of soil erodibility to some extent. Soil electrical conductivity and organic carbon are the primary factors driving changes in soil physical quality across different land use patterns.