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Understanding the effects of precipitation change on plant growth and development in desert steppe is crucial for predicting the response and adaptation of desert steppe plants to climate change. Here， we conducted a 3-years experiment to examine the effects of precipitation changes （background and ±50% precipitation） on quantitative characteristics （branch number， fruit number and plant density）， aboveground biomass （AGB） and functional traits of the dominant plant Peganum harmala in Urat desert steppe. Correlation analysis was conducted to study the correlation between each factor and AGB. And structural equation model （SEM） was established to explore the influence mechanisms of precipitation change， quantitative characteristics and functional traits on AGB of P. harmala. The results showed that： （1） Under the treatment of increased 50% precipitation， the number of branches， the number of fruits and the plant height were significantly increased（P |