Experimental Ramet Aggregation in the Clonal Plant Agrostis Stolonifera Reduces Its Competitive Ability

Lenssen, J.P.M.; Hershock, Chad; Speek, T.A.A.; During, Heinjo J.; Kroon, Hans de

doi:10.1890/04-0939

Cited by 20 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Perhaps the ability of a runner species to escape localized light competition by placing new ramets in areas of greater light availability facilitates this growth form's increase in relative abundance when soil N is no longer limiting. Clumping of ramets has been shown to reduce competitive ability under certain environmental conditions (Lenssen et al 2005), but this likely depends on the growth form of the competitors (Cheplick 1997) and thus is neighborhood dependent. Manipulative garden or pot experiments that have explicitly focused on competition between clonal growth forms are rarely repeated in the Weld (Callaghan et al 1992;Gough et al 2002), thus extrapolating to natural conditions remains diYcult.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Incorporating clonal growth form clarifies the role of plant height in response to nitrogen addition

et al. 2012

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Nutrient addition to grasslands consistently causes species richness declines and productivity increases. Competition, particularly for light, is often assumed to produce this result. Using a long-term dataset from North American herbaceous plant communities, we tested whether height and clonal growth form together predict responses to fertilization because neither trait alone predicted species loss in a previous analysis. Species with a tall-runner growth form commonly increased in relative abundance in response to added nitrogen, while short species and those with a tall-clumped clonal growth form often decreased. The ability to increase in size via vegetative spread across space, while simultaneously occupying the canopy, conferred competitive advantage, although typically only the abundance of a single species within each height-clonal growth form significantly responded to fertilization in each experiment. Classifying species on the basis of two traits (height and clonal growth form) increases our ability to predict species responses to fertilization compared to either trait alone in predominantly herbaceous plant communities. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00442-012-2264-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Incorporating clonal growth form clarifies the role of plant height in response to nitrogen addition

et al. 2012

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“…However, these simulations were not spatially explicit. At the species-rather than genotypelevel, clonal growth form has been shown to affect competitiveness in a plant community, with ramet aggregation reducing the competitive ability of a clonal species in an open environment (Lenssen et al 2005). Clustering can also affect mating patterns in dioecious species (Charpentier 2002).…”

Section: Locusmentioning

confidence: 99%

SSR-based analysis of clonality, spatial genetic structure and introgression from the Lombardy poplar into a natural population of Populus nigra L. along the Loire River

Chenault¹,

Arnaud‐Haond

Juteau³

et al. 2011

Tree Genetics & Genomes

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A scarcity of favourable habitats and introgression from exotic cultivars are two major threats to black poplars (Populus nigra L.) in Europe. Natural vegetative propagation contributes to maintenance of the species in areas where seedling recruitment is limited. Exhaustive sampling of all mature trees in a natural P. nigra stand (413 individuals at recorded positions), genotyping at 11 SSR loci, and a standardized analysis framework resulted in a precise description of clonality in terms of (a) frequency, (b) spatial growth form, and (c) impacts on the overall spatial genetic structure (SGS). The high proportion of replicated genotypes detected resulted in a genotypic richness (R) of 0.47. Up to 18 ramets were found per multilocus lineage (MLL), but 95% of MLLs contained fewer than five ramets (Pareto index β=1.07). No significant difference in vegetative propagation potential was found between genders. Uneven spatial distribution of ramets, with clustering of clonal ramets (aggregation index A c =0.62) and near-zero intermingling between MLLs (clonal dominance index D c = 0.99), resulted in a 'phalanx' clonal growth form, explaining most of the SGS observed over short distances (0-20 m, Sp=0.0324). Although they did not exhibit the typical columnar shape of the Lombardy poplar (P. nigra var. italica), five trees were found to be probable F 1 hybrids of this old and widely distributed cultivar.

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“…In the garden plots increased clonal spatial spread was a relatively efficient survival strategy, as the rhizomes broke through the hexagon of surrounding grasses and reached the circular edges of the plots which the more slowly expanding, dominant grasses had not colonized yet. Increased clonal spread in late-successional grasslands or in productive annuallymown meadows, however, is less useless if no gaps are created within a homogenous cover of competitive plants (Lenssen et al 2005), and C. dissectum is likely to become extinct in such dense grasslands.…”

Section: Clonal Growth Strategy Of C Dissectummentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Clonal growth by long stolons or rhizomes can be a successful life history strategy as runner production forms an effective way to exploit heterogeneous resources and to rapidly occupy space (Eriksson 1986;de Kroon and Schieving 1990;Lenssen et al 2005). However, runners are not a guarantee for high abundance in a landscape, since the percentage of rare species among plants with rhizomes longer than 10 cm is equal to that percentage for other types of clonal growth (Klimeš and Klimešová 2000).…”

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confidence: 99%

Demographic vulnerability of the clonal and endangered meadow thistle

Jongejans

Kroon

2008

Plant Ecol

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For effective management of endangered species it is pivotal to understand why a species is endangered and which key life cycle components are involved in its response to environmental changes. Our objective was to investigate the response of rosettes of the redlisted clonal herb Cirsium dissectum to anthropogenic nutrient enrichment, which threatens its populations, and the consequences of these responses for its population dynamics. We constructed matrix population models with demographic data from three populations and four annual transitions and we decomposed the spatiotemporal variation in projected population growth rates into contributions from life cycle components. These patterns were compared with below-ground rosette dynamics in different fields, and with the below-and above-ground rosette dynamics in a garden experiment with nutrient enrichment and competing grasses. The decomposition analysis revealed that increased clonal rosette formation and decreased rosette survival were driving the spatial variation in the population growth rate. Excavating the below-ground rhizome network revealed a higher rosette turn-over in experimentally fertilized garden plots, which not only resulted in increased plot-level extinction, but also in increased spread of the clonal offspring. This supported the observed trend among field populations: rosette formation trades off with rosette survival. Surviving seedlings were only found in areas where the topsoil had been removed. The endangered C. dissectum is vulnerable when its habitat becomes more productive, because this species does not have the necessary capability to build up biomass. Small-scale disturbances such as created by sodcutting or trampling cattle are essential for seedling establishment and necessary to render the explorative strategy of rhizomatous clonal spread successful.

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Experimental Ramet Aggregation in the Clonal Plant Agrostis Stolonifera Reduces Its Competitive Ability

Cited by 20 publications

References 31 publications

Incorporating clonal growth form clarifies the role of plant height in response to nitrogen addition

Incorporating clonal growth form clarifies the role of plant height in response to nitrogen addition

SSR-based analysis of clonality, spatial genetic structure and introgression from the Lombardy poplar into a natural population of Populus nigra L. along the Loire River

Demographic vulnerability of the clonal and endangered meadow thistle

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