The health status of soil environment directly determines the quality of medicinal plants. Soil physical, chemical, and biological properties are key indicators for evaluating soil health. Their individual or synergistic effects exert profound influences on the growth and development, nutrient absorption and metabolism, as well as bioactive component accumulation of medicinal plants. By clarifying the connotation of soil health, this paper focuses on the impacts of soil health indicators (soil physical, chemical, and biological properties) on the quality development of medicinal plants. It systematically reviews the response mechanisms of medicinal plants in terms of morphology, physiology, biochemistry, and bioactive component accumulation under different soil conditions, and expounds the comprehensive effects of the interactions among soil health indicators on the quality formation of medicinal plants. The purpose is to summarize the interaction mechanism between soil environment and medicinal plants for the growth and quality improvement of Chinese medicinal materials, so as to provide a solid theoretical basis for optimizing the cultivation environment of medicinal plants and promoting the technical application of increasing their yield and quality.

soil properties  /  soil health  /  medicinal plants  /  growth and development  /  quality formation