Production performance of four forage legumes species of Medicago sativa,Onobrychis viciifolia,Lotus corniculatus and Galega officinalis were determined,including plant height,above-ground biomass per unit area,tillers per unit area,fertile tillers per unit area,shoot /leaf ratio and fresh /dry matter weight ratio,and the distribution characteristics of their root systems in 0- 100 cm soil layers with 10 cm interval were studied. Results showed that the average aboveground fresh biomass(4 a and 5 a) of four forage legumes species successively were L. corniculatus > M. sativa > O. viciifolia > G. officinalis. The average plant heights in two years successively were O. viciifolia > M. sativa > G. officinalis > L. corniculatus. Tillers per unit area of four forage legume species in two years successively were M. sativa > L. corniculatus > O. viciifolia > G. officinalis. Fertile tillers per unit area in two years were O. viciifolia > M. sativa > L. corniculatus > G. officinalis. Average shoot /leaf ratio in two years were G. officinalis > M. sativa > O. viciifolia > L. corniculatus. Average moisture contents of four forage legume species in two years successively were G. officinalis > L. corniculatus > M. sativa = O. viciifolia. The distribution characteristics of root systems of four forage legumes species in 0- 100 cm soil layers were as follows: the root weights of M. sativa in 0- 40 cm soil layers accounted for about 98. 3% of total root weight,that of O. viciifolia in 0- 30 cm soil layers was 85. 8%,that of L. corniculatus in 0- 10 cm soil layers was 80%,and that of G. officinalis in 0- 40 cm soil layers was 81. 4%. The results suggested that L. corniculatus was suited to plant in slighter degraded pasture to control water and soil erosion in early stage,G. officinalis with strong lateral roots was adapted to degraded grassland in the Loess Plateau where soil nutrient was poor,while O. viciifolia and M. sativa with potentially strong main root were fit for water
