Lianas play a crucial role in forest species diversity, biomass, nutrient cycling, and vegetation restoration. To date, numerous studies on the stoichiometric characteristics of liana leaves have predominantly focused on temperate, subtropical, and tropical forests. However, there remains a lack of comprehensive understanding regarding the nutrient concentrations and their stoichiometric characteristics in lianas growing in rocky desertification habitats. In the present study, we investigated six leaf nutrient concentrations and three stoichiometric ratios across 20 liana species in various subtropical rocky desertification habitats. The results indicated that lianas in habitats with severe rocky desertification exhibited significantly higher potassium concentrations in their leaves compared to those in habitats with moderate rocky desertification. Within habitats characterized by moderate rocky desertification, there were notable positive correlations observed between the nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium concentrations in liana leaves. However, in habitats with severe rocky desertification, phosphorus demonstrated significant positive correlations with both magnesium and potassium. Principal component analysis further revealed that lianas in severely desertified habitats tended to possess higher concentrations of leaf potassium and calcium, whereas those in moderately desertified habitats exhibited an opposite trend. The findings of this research provide crucial theoretical insights that can guide vegetation restoration efforts in different rocky desertification regions.