Vegetation, soil moisture, and soil temperature for 38 plots in the Meretschi catchment, Swiss Alps

This dataset accompanies the study Vegetation Transitions and Environmental Controls on Alpine Hydrology and provides the data used to investigate how alpine vegetation shifts influence soil moisture, temperature, and snow dynamics in a mountain catchment.

The study was conducted in the Meretschi catchment (Swiss Alps) and focuses on ecohydrological changes associated with “mountain greening”, including transitions from bare ground to pioneer vegetation, grassland, shrub, and forest communities. The dataset supports analyses of how vegetation mediates topographic and climatic controls on hydrological processes, with implications for water availability under climate change .

Data were collected across 42 field plots (38 retained after 4 where lost) using a plot-based sampling design. Measurements include vegetation composition, soil characteristics, topography, high-frequency soil moisture and temperature, and derived snow metrics over a two-year period (July 2023 – July 2025).

1. Calibration_raw_air_water.csv

Raw calibration measurements for TOMST TMS4 soil moisture sensors.Includes reference readings in air and water used to validate and convert time-domain transmission (TDT) signals to volumetric water content (VWC) with the help of the R package myClim.

2. CoverTable_Species.csv

Vegetation survey data per plot.Contains:

Species presence and cover estimates (%)

Vegetation classification inputs

Basis for vegetation class assignment (pioneer, grassland...)

3. Field_measurements.csv

Field-based observations collected during summer 2023.Includes:

Vegetation structure (cover, rooting depth, root abundance)

Soil properties (depth, organic layer, litter, macropores)

Topographic variables (slope, aspect, elevation)

4. Tomst_raw_data.xlsx

High-frequency time series data from TOMST TMS4 loggers.Contains:

Soil moisture raw count at -15 cm depth

Soil temperature at multiple depths (+4, -1, -9 cm)

15-minute interval measurements from July 2023 to July 2025

These data were used to derive:

Soil moisture dynamics (ΔVWC)

Snow cover duration

Melt-out and ripening dates

5. plot_locations.kml

Geospatial dataset containing the locations of all measurement plots.Provides:

Geographic coordinates of sampling plots

Coordinate reference system: WGS84 geographic coordinate system (EPSG:4326; latitude/longitude)