Abstract: In order to study the characteristics of microplastics and its response relationship with mulching years, irrigation methods in the farmland soil of Hetao Irrigation District, field sampling and indoor experiments were used in combination for in-depth study. This paper mainly analyzed the current situation of plastic film mulching in Hetao Irrigation District by considering the effects of mulching years (5, 10, 20 a) and irrigation methods (drip irrigation and surface irrigation under film mulching). The abundance, type, color, particle size and other distribution characteristics of microplastics in the farmland soil were analyzed and other microplastic surface features and attachments also were observed and discussed, which was supported by scanning the electric microscope and energy spectrometer. The results showed that the average abundance of microplastics in soil under the different mulching years (5, 10, 20 a) in Hetao Irrigation District was 2 526.00, 4 352.80, 6 070.00 pieces/kg. The maximum microplastic was 2133.50 pieces/kg in every layer of soil appeared at 0-10 cm soil layer by mulching 20 a, and the minimum microplastic was 678.00 pieces/kg at 20-30 cm soil layer by mulching 5 a. The average annual increasing rate of microplastics was 14.46% in the early stage (5-10 a), while the increasing rate in the later stage (10-20 a) was 3.95%. The abundance of soil microplastics was affected by different plastic-mulching years and irrigation methods. The abundance of microplastic in drip irrigation farmland was slightly larger than the surface irrigation farmland, and it decreased with the increase of soil depth. By further analysis, the major categories of microplastics were fibers (23.34%), fragments (26.31%), films (38.57%) and grains (11.78%); the colors of microplastics included black, transparent, green, red, blue, etc., with the proportions 24.56%, 23.83%, 19.34%, 16.52% and 15.75% respectively. In the 0-10 cm soil layer, the main color of microplastics was black and it accounted for 30.25% of the total microplastic; in the >10-20 and >20-30 cm soil layer, the main color of microplastics were transparent, accounted for 30.15% and 29.23% of the total microplastic. The particle size exhibited a downward trend with the increase of the mulching years, and the majority of particle size less than 1 mm. In addition, with the increase of mulching years, microplastics particle size in >0-10, >10-20, >20-30 cm soil layer was gradually decreased, and there was no significant relationship between size and irrigation method (P>0.05). The surface features of microplastic samples were rough and irregular pores existed on it, and fiber, thin film and fragments microplastics had regular micropores, while the grain microplastic surface pores were irregular and concave. The porous properties of microplastics in soil made the characteristic of greater specific surface area carried by it. This characteristic could increase the adsorption of other pollutants and microorganisms from the soil; and there were stable iron oxides and rare earth elements on the surface. The research is of great significance to clarify the distribution and harm of microplastics in the soil of the Hetao Irrigation District.