To investigate characteristics of H isotope variation in long-chain n-alkanes (delta D (n-alkanes)) from higher plants in surface soils under a single ecosystem, 12 samples from a basalt regolith were randomly collected from Damaping in Wanquan County of Zhangjiakou in North China. Molecular distribution and C (delta (13)C (n-alkanes)) and H isotopes of long-chain n-alkanes, as well as C isotopes of TOC (delta (13)C(TOC)), were analyzed. Both delta (13)C(TOC) and delta (13)C (n-alkanes) values from four representative dominant long-chain n-alkanes (n-C(27), n-C(29), n-C(31), n-C(33)) derived from terrestrial higher plants show minor variations among the 12 samples, indicating the major contributor is from local grasses with a uniform C3 photosynthetic pathway. In contrast, variations in delta D (n-alkanes) values of the four long-chain n-alkanes are relatively large, with the more abundant homologs generally showing more negative delta D (n-alkanes) values and less variation. However, variation of < 30aEuro degrees among weighted averaged delta D (n-alkanes) values of the four long-chain n-alkanes is not only less than that among delta D (n-alkanes) values for different modern terrestrial C(3) grasses from the specific locations, but also less than the literature values of delta D (n-alkanes) of long-chain n-alkanes for single species over different seasons. Thus, because the sources of long-chain n-alkanes in surface soils and sediments are similarly from multiple individual plants, our results are significant in confirming that paleoclimatic, paleoenvironmental and paleohydrological information can be interpreted more accurately from delta D (n-alkanes) values of long-chain n-alkanes from sediments, particularly terrestrial sediments with organic matter derived from in-situ plants.