Early Stage Plant Species Assemblage on Harvested Sitka Spruce Plantation Over Ancient Woodland and Hedged Agricultural Grassland

2013 ◽  
Vol 113 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Alan Cooper ◽  
Thomas McCann
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Sitka Spruce ◽  
Species Assemblage ◽  
Ancient Woodland

scholarly journals The Evaluation of Developing Shoreline Communities and Potential for Natural Vegetation in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona-Utah

1989 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 74-80
Author(s):  
Gwendolyn Waring
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Community ◽  
Initial Phase ◽  
Annual Report ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Natural Vegetation ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
Lake Powell ◽  
Recreation Area ◽  
Riparian Plant

The study of the riparian plant community along the shoreline of Lake Powell offers a unique opportunity to observe the development of a plant community from a very early stage. This annual report discusses some of the results of the initial phase of this study, which was designed to describe the structure of the plant community as it occurs today and to describe preliminary results of experiments begun to assess interactions between the exotic tamarisk and native riparian plant species.

Effects of allelopathy and competition for nutrients and water on the survival and growth of plant species in a natural Dacrydium forest

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunyan Wu ◽  
Yongfu Chen ◽  
David GrenierHéon
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Natural Forests ◽  
Rare And Endangered Species ◽  
Rate Of Increase ◽  
Rare And Endangered ◽  
Survival And Growth ◽  
Species Specific

A comprehensive understanding of allelopathy and resource availability mechanisms is critical for protecting rare and endangered species, biodiversity and ecosystems. We treated 20 major plant species with a gradient of three aqueous extracts of Dacrydium pierrei litter and irrigation/nutrients to compare the relative importance of allelopathy and resource availability on roots, stem growth and seed germination using bioassays. The results showed that the height, ground diameter and aboveground biomass of individuals increased more quickly in the early stage, and rate of increase tends to slow down in the later. The allelopathy was species specific (inhibitory, neutral or promotive), and the survival rate and growth rate of saplings changed significantly along a resource treatment gradient (P< 0.05), indicating that the native species diversity was reduced by lower or higher resource availability in natural forests. The effect of allelopathy on trees was relatively weak during the treatments, and that of resource availability was relatively strong. Resource availability is relatively more important than allelopathy in mediating the reduction in plant biodiversity. Therefore, water and nutrient availability and the species and number of allelochemicals released by plants have substantial influences on the survival and growth of plant species in a natural Dacrydium forest.

scholarly journals What are the demographic consequences of a seed bank stage for columnar cacti?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Arroyo-Cosultchi ◽  
María C. Mandujano ◽  
Roberto Salguero-Gómez ◽  
Armando J. Martínez ◽  
Jordan Golubov
Keyword(s):  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Seed Bank ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Vital Rates ◽  
Matrix Population Models ◽  
Columnar Cacti ◽  
Seed Bank Dynamics

AbstractThe dynamics of plants populations are often limited by the early stages in their life cycles. The question if the columnar cacti have or not a seed bank in predictable environments. Yet, information regarding seed bank dynamics and how these may influence the full life cycle of plant species is remarkably scarce or ignore. This lack of knowledge is mostly due to the challenges in quantifying seed vital rates. Studies of arid land plant species have historically been focused on the drivers of sporadic recruitment. However, little attention has been given to the demographic consequences of early developmental stages, including seed banks. Here, we evaluate the effects of seed bank survival and seedling recruitment vital rates on the population dynamics and viability of 12 columnar cacti species, recent evidence suggests that cacti seeds may remain viable for the short-term. We assess how changes in the vital rates of these processes, and the inclusion of a seed bank affect population growth rate (λ). We found that a seed bank in the examined matrix population models significantly increased λ as well as the vital rate elasticities of λ to growth and fecundity, whereas that of overall survival decreased. Our numerical simulations showed that seed survival had a larger effect on λ than seedling recruitment and establishment. We suggest that seed bank may explain the structure and population dynamics. Thus, we argue reconsider that this early stage in demographic models will generate more informed decisions on the conservation and management of columnar cacti.

scholarly journals Interactions among litter chemical traits alter the non-additive effect of litter mixing

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
hongling yang ◽  
Yulin Li ◽  
jin zhan ◽  
Chelmeg Bao ◽  
yongqing luo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Soil Respiration ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Late Stage ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Additive Effects ◽  
Litter Chemistry ◽  
Mixing Effect ◽  
Litter Mixing ◽  
Chemical Traits

Litter decomposition is a fundamental nutrient cycling process, and litter diversity decreases induced by biodiversity loss have substantial effects on soil carbon cycling. However, few experimental studies have characterized the effect of litter diversity on and litter chemistry. Here, we used single-species and mixed litters to study the effects of litter chemical properties on the direction, intensity and drivers of non-additive litter-mixing effects. We found that 1) there was no significant effect of litter species richness on soil processes, and the litter chemistry of component species was more robust to soil respiration and non-additive effects. 2) The early-stage mixing effect was negative, ranging from -3.1 to -0.3, and its magnitude was strongest in chemically diverse litter mixtures; the late-stage mixing effect ranged from -2.3 to 1.3, and the non-additive effect of chemically similar species was positive. 3) Litter carbon, lignin, phenols and soluble sugar affected early-stage soil respiration, and litter carbon, nitrogen, phenols, and condensed tannins affected late-stage soil respiration, which accounted for 46% and 56% of the variation in early- and late-stage soil respiration, respectively. 4) Compared with plant species richness, litter chemistry altered the direction and magnitude of litter mixing, and litter chemical composition (including litter chemical traits and their interactions) had a stronger effect on non-additive effects than variation in single chemical compounds according to the R value (R=0.36). 5) Artemisia halodendron, as a key sand-fixing plant species, will accelerate nutrient cycling, but it has negative effects on carbon cycling when mixed with other plant species

scholarly journals Structural and Functional Organization of the Root System: A Comparative Study on Five Plant Species

Plants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriano Sofo ◽  
Hazem S. Elshafie ◽  
Ippolito Camele
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Functional Organization ◽  
Net Primary Production ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Root Traits ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Soil C And N ◽  
C And N ◽  
C And N Cycling

Plants are affected by soil environments to the same extent that they affect soil functioning through interactions between environmental and genetic factors. Here, five plant species (broad bean, pea, cabbage, fennel, and olive) grown under controlled pot conditions were tested for their ability to differently stimulate the degradation of standard litter. Litter, soil C and N contents were measured for evaluating chemical changes due to plant presence, while soil microbial abundance was evaluated to assess if it had a positive or negative catalyzing influence on litter decomposition. The architecture and morphological traits of roots systems were also evaluated by using specific open-source software (SmartRoot). Soil chemical and microbiological characteristics were significantly influenced by the plant species. Variations in soil C/N dynamics were correlated with the diversity of root traits among species. Early stage decomposition of the standard litter changed on the basis of the plant species. The results indicated that key soil processes are governed by interactions between plant roots, soil C and N, and the microbial metabolism that stimulate decomposition reactions. This, in turn, can have marked effects on soil chemical and microbiological fertility, both fundamental for sustaining crops, and can promote the development of new approaches for optimizing soil C and N cycling, managing nutrient transport, and sustaining and improving net primary production.

scholarly journals Plant species- and stage-specific differences in microbial decay of mangrove leaf litter: the older the better?

Oecologia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Novia Arinda Pradisty ◽  
A. Aldrie Amir ◽  
Martin Zimmer
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Total Phenolic Content ◽  
Mangrove Forest ◽  
Phenolic Content ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Decay Rates ◽  
Total Phenolic ◽  
Litter Mass

AbstractLeaf litter and its breakdown products represent an important input of organic matter and nutrients to mangrove sediments and adjacent coastal ecosystems. It is commonly assumed that old-grown stands with mature trees contribute more to the permanent sediment organic matter pool than younger stands. However, neither are interspecific differences in leaf decay rates taken into account in this assumption nor is our understanding of the underlying mechanisms or drivers of differences in leaf chemistry sufficient. This study examines the influence of different plant species and ontogenetic stage on the microbial decay of mangrove leaf litter. A litterbag experiment was conducted in the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve, Malaysia, to monitor leaf litter mass loss, and changes in leaf litter chemistry and microbial enzyme activity. Four mangrove species of different morphologies were selected, namely the trees Rhizophora apiculata and Bruguiera parviflora, the fern Acrostichum aureum and the shrub Acanthus ilicifolius. Decay rates of mangrove leaf litter decreased from A. ilicifolius to R. apiculata to B. parviflora to A. aureum. Leaf litter mass, total phenolic content, protein precipitation capacity and phenol oxidase activity were found to decline rapidly during the early stage of decay. Leaf litter from immature plants differed from that of mature plants in total phenolic content, phenolic signature, protein precipitating capacity and protease activity. For R. apiculata, but not of the other species, leaf litter from immature plants decayed faster than the litter of mature plants. The findings of this study advance our understanding of the organic matter dynamics in mangrove stands of different compositions and ages and will, thus, prove useful in mangrove forest management.

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