Effects of Seed Weight and Microsite Characteristics on Germination and Seedling Fitness in Two Species of Quercus in a Subtropical Wet Hill Forest

Tripathi, R. S.; Khan, M. L.

doi:10.2307/3565956

Cited by 172 publications

(127 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…In addition, as in most studies (e.g. Weller, 1985 ;Wulff, 1986b ;Tripathi & Khan, 1990 ;Moegenburg, 1996 ;Bonfil, 1998 ; see also the references cited in the Introduction section), a positive relation was found between seed mass and early growth, measured in this case as stem length (Tables 3, 4). However, the effect of seed mass on growth parameters changed with time, and after one growing season the ANCOVAs showed that seedling performance was influenced only by maternal origin (Table 5), whereas within-tree variation in seed mass had no effect.…”

Section: Seedling Growthmentioning

confidence: 68%

“…In general, it is accepted that, relative to large seeds, small seeds usually have reduced emergence (Zimmerman & Weis, 1983 ;Weller, 1985 ;Winn, 1988 ;Tripathi & Khan, 1990 ;Hendrix & Trapp, 1992 ;Rice et al, 1993 ;Prinzie & Chmielewski, 1994), higher mortality (Schaal, 1980 ;Tripathi & Khan, 1990 ;Bonfil, 1998) and lower seedling growth (Wulff, 1986a ;Hendrix et al, 1991 ;Dawson & Ehleringer, 1991 ;Baker et al, 1994 ;Moegenburg, 1996 ;Weiner et al, 1997 ;Vaughton & Ramsey, 1998 ;Bonfil 1998). However, other studies show no relationship between seed size and seedling performance in some species, as described by Cipollini & Stiles (1991), Rice et al (1993) and Vaughton & Ramsey (1998) for seed germination ; Hendrix & Trapp (1992) for seedling survival ; Dolan (1984) and Marshall (1986) for seedling growth.…”

Section: mentioning

confidence: 86%

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Seed mass versus seedling performance in Scots pine: a maternally dependent trait

Castro

1999

New Phytologist

107

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It is generally accepted that larger seeds give rise to seedlings with better performance. On the other hand, the size that a seed reaches is genetically determined by at least two different traits ; the genetic variability of the developing embryo and the genetic variability of the maternal plant. Thus, the relative contributions of these two traits affect seedling performance by influencing seed size. In this paper, I investigate the effect of seed size on seedling performance in the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). From eight maternal plants, 50 seeds were planted in each of two soil types (800 seeds in total), and seedling performance was monitored for 1 yr. Seed mass proved to be highly constant within maternal plants. Soil type influenced emergence and survival ; however, the effect of soil type differed depending on maternal origin. Seed mass was positively correlated with seedling emergence, although this relationship was not found for seedling survival or date of emergence. The initial growth of the shoot was also positively correlated with seed mass. However, after one growing season, seed mass had no effect on seedling performace, which depended exclusively on maternal origin. Nevertheless, the mean mass of seeds produced by plants was positively correlated with mean values of growth parameters. Thus, first-year seedling performance seems to be a maternal trait indirectly associated with seed size.

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Section: Seedling Growthmentioning

confidence: 68%

Section: mentioning

confidence: 86%

Seed mass versus seedling performance in Scots pine: a maternally dependent trait

Castro

1999

New Phytologist

107

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“…On one hand, seed size has generally a favourable effect on seedling survival and growth (Bonfil 1998;Castro et al 2008;Quero et al 2007) that may persist for various years (Seiwa 2000;Tripathi and Khan 1990). On the other hand, microsites of high overstory canopy closure provide poor conditions for numerous tree species, and seedlings tend to recruit in gaps or areas of sparse canopy cover (Asbjornsen et al 2004;Gómez-Aparicio et al 2008;Rodríguez-Calcerrada et al 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Emergence time is an important component of fitness (Castro 2006;Seiwa 2000;Urbieta et al 2008;Verdu and Traveset 2005) that is partly related to seed size (Du and Huang 2008;Tripathi and Khan 1990) and canopy closure (Augspurger et al 2005;Jones et al 1997;Seiwa 1998). Early emergence gives plants a performance advantage during recruitment due in part to the pre-emption of aboveand below-ground resources to competitors (Geber and Griffen 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since seed reserves provide a large part of first-year seedling' nitrogen (Villar-Salvador et al 2010), a positive effect of seed size on leaf WUE is expected if seedlings from bigger seeds (i.e. with more reserves) have leaves with more nitrogen (Brookes et al 1980;Tripathi and Khan 1990), higher nitrogen concentration (Khurana and Singh 2004), and thus higher carboxylation capacity relative to stomatal conductance to water vapour (Cordell et al 1999). On the other hand, the microsite of seed dispersal affects leaf WUE in relation to the abundance of resources, such as water and light (Ehleringer and Cooper 1988).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The relevance of seed size in modulating leaf physiology and early plant performance in two tree species

Rodríguez‐Calcerrada¹,

Nanos

Aranda

2011

Trees

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The size of seeds and the microsite of seed dispersal may affect the early establishment of seedlings through different physiological processes. Here, we examined the effects of seed size and light availability on seedling growth and survival, and whether such effects were mediated by water use efficiency. Acorns of Quercus petraea and the more drought-tolerant Quercus pyrenaica were sowed within and around a tree canopy gap in a subMediterranean forest stand. We monitored seedling emergence and measured predawn leaf water potential (^Ppd), leaf nitrogen per unit area (N a ), leaf mass per area, leaf carbon isotope composition (5 C) and plant growth at the end of the first summer. Survival was measured on the next year. Path analysis revealed a consistent pattern in both species of higher <5 13 C as W pd decreased and higher <5 13 C as seedlings emerged later in the season, indicating an increase in 13 C as the growing season is shorter and drier. There was a direct positive effect of seed size on S C in Q. petraea that was absent in Q. pyrenaica. Leaf 5 C had no effect on growth but the probability of surviving until the second year was higher for those seedlings of Q. pyrenaica that had lower <5 13 C on the first year. In conclusion, leaf <5 13 C is affected by seed size, seedling emergence time and the availability of light and water, however, leaf <5 13 C is irrelevant for first year growth, which is directly dependent on the amount of seed reserves.

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Is Direct Seeding a Biologically Viable Strategy for Restoring Forest Ecosystems? Evidences from a Meta‐analysis

2015

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Ecological restoration has become an important technique for mitigating the human impacts on natural vegetation. Planting seedlings is the most common approach to regain lost forest cover. However, these activities require a large economic investment. Direct seeding is considered a cheaper and easier alternative technique, in which tree seeds are introduced directly on the site rather than transplanting seedlings from nurseries. To evaluate the effectiveness of direct seeding, we conducted a comprehensive search of the literature using 'restoration', 'direct seeding' and 'sowing' as keywords, and we performed a meta-analysis using 30 papers and 89 species. We used two different measures of restoration success: seed germination probability and success probability (the chance that a seed germinates and survives until the end of the experiment). In general, restoration attempts using direct-seeding techniques were relatively unsuccessful. On average, seed germination and success probability were 0·239 and 0·114, respectively, and were not affected by climate, species successional group or the application of pre-germinative treatments. Germination and success probability increased with seed size, and the use of physical protections resulted in a nearly twofold increase in germination probability, but this effect faded by the end of the experiments. Because of the low rate of seedling success, we suggest the use of direct seeding as a complementary technique to reduce restoration costs, particularly for species with large seeds and known high germination rates, but our results do not support direct seeding as a substitute for seedling planting.

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Effects of Seed Weight and Microsite Characteristics on Germination and Seedling Fitness in Two Species of Quercus in a Subtropical Wet Hill Forest

Cited by 172 publications

References 28 publications

Seed mass versus seedling performance in Scots pine: a maternally dependent trait

Seed mass versus seedling performance in Scots pine: a maternally dependent trait

The relevance of seed size in modulating leaf physiology and early plant performance in two tree species

Is Direct Seeding a Biologically Viable Strategy for Restoring Forest Ecosystems? Evidences from a Meta‐analysis

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