A Decade of Close-to-Nature Transformation Alters Species Composition and Increases Plant Community Diversity in Two Coniferous Plantations

Abstract

Close-to-nature transformation silviculture is a promising approach to meet the criteria for sustainable forestry. To explore the effects of close-to-nature transformation on community structure and plant diversity in Pinus massoniana and Cunninghamia lanceolatas pure plantations, four stands were selected, including close-to-nature transformed stand of P. massoniana (PCN) and its unimproved pure stand (PCK), and close-to-nature transformed stand of C. lanceolata (CCN) and its unimproved pure stand (CCK). Plant diversity and community structure in the four stands were investigated before and after a decade of close-to-nature transformation. After the close-to-nature transformation, the plant diversity and community structure were significantly altered. Compared with control stands, the transformation increased the species richness and diversity of the tree layer and the whole community, while did not significantly affected the shrub and herb diversity. The species richness in the tree layer in the P. massoniana and C. lanceolata plantations was 2.1 and 2.8 times that of their corresponding control. Species composition and important value of each species were altered in the tree, shrub and herb layers. The close-to-natural transformation lowered the community dominance and the important value of P. massoniana and C. lanceolate. The advantage position of single species in the community was weakened by the forest transformation. The plant community became diversified and uniformly distributed. The enhanced community species diversity was derived from the increase in the tree diversity. These results indicated that close-to-nature transformation increased the forest plant diversity and optimized the community structure. The close-to-nature transformation plays a positive role in coniferous plantation ecosystem structure.

The Abundance and Structure of Deadwood: A Comparison of Mixed and Thinned Chinese Fir Plantations

“…We have been conducting a variety of silvicultural studies in plantations in and around the region since 1979 in a range of stand types, including fast-growing, high-yield forests, short-cycle rotation forests, semi-natural forests, MFs comprising both native and exotic species, and MFs of fast-growing, economically valuable species ( Ming et al, 2014 , 2018 , 2020 ; Sun et al, 2015 ; Li et al, 2020 ). As part of this work, a MF of Chinese fir [ Cunninghamia Lanceolata (Lamb.)…”

“…Globally, the continuous expansion of plantation and crop areas (e.g., Pinus , Taxodiaceae, and Eucalyptus , which are widely planted in forested regions of southern China, and Larix and Populus , which are abundant in the northeast), has had numerous ecological impacts [e.g., habitat loss and fragmentation, biodiversity loss, intensification of pests and diseases, low resilience, and poor recovery after disturbance ( Sheng and Xue, 1992 ; Li, 2004 ; Zhu et al, 2010 ; Lu et al, 2018 )], and has also led to environmental degradation in the form of soil erosion, landslides, and decreased soil fertility and water holding capacity ( Li, 2004 ; Lu et al, 2018 ). Thinning and underplanting are widely used to transform plantations into uneven-aged mixed forests (MFs) in an effort to eliminate or mitigate such impacts, and to alter the characteristics of plantations at the regional scale (e.g., Parker et al, 2001 ; Zhu et al, 2010 ; Otto et al, 2012 ; Lu et al, 2018 ; Zhang et al, 2019 ; Ming et al, 2020 ). Mixed stands may also be planted from scratch (e.g., Piotto et al, 2004 ; Li et al, 2020 ).…”

Response of plant diversity and soil physicochemical properties to different gap sizes in a Pinus massoniana plantation

“…The IV value was used to calculate species diversity in each plot (Zhang et al, 2011). We used four α-diversity indices: Richness (R), the Shannon-Wiener index (H ), Simpson index (D) and Pielou index (J ) (Zhou et al, 2016), which were calculated as follows: Important value (%): IV = (Relative density + Relative frequency + Relative coverage) /3 (1) (Ming et al, 2020) R = S…”

Species Diversity of Deadwood in Chinese Fir Plantations Differs between Mixed Planting and Thinning Treatments

“…Such stands are candidates for conversion. Understory planting, thinning [10,26], delayed harvesting after thinning [22,27], and hillsides facilitate afforestation [4], and have been used to promote the "near-natural conversion" of Chinese fir plantations. Typically, managers have had a short-term focus on interplanted living organisms and converted forests, including the growth rates and diversity of herbs, shrubs, and trees.…”