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The alpine meadow grasslands of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP), of China are currently undergoing numerous changes, especially as a result of climate change and intensified livestock farming. The shift in botanical composition is a significant change that can result many ecological consequences such as litter composition and dynamics. In this study we investigated the effect of litter of three dominant grassland species in QTP on the plant community characteristics. The experiment was conducted at the QTP Research Base of Southwest Minzu University, Hongyuan, on the northeastern boundary of the QTP. We tested litter of Kobresia setchwanensis (Ks), Elymus nutans (En) and Ligularia virgaurea (Lv) with four different quantities for each type (0, 100, 200, 400 and 600g/m2). The litter was added in early May and the plant community characteristics were measured during the peak growing season in August. We found addition of litter significantly affected the plant species richness, above-ground biomass, plant community coverage and the composition of plant functional groups. These responses were different depending on the litter type and the quantity. The above ground biomass and plant community coverage was significantly lower at the plots received higher rates of litter (400 and 600 g/m2) compared to the control. The plant species richness decreased with increasing rates of Lv litter added. The addition of Ks litter significantly reduced the Gramineae composition while significantly increased the Forbs composition. The litter addition had little effect on legumes. The Sedge composition was significantly higher at the plots received higher rates of litter.�Our results indicate that litter is an important control of plant functional groups and thereby impacting forage quality and quantity for grazing animals in alpine meadow grasslands. Key words: Grasslands, Plant litter, Community structure, Species diversity, Alpine meadow