Soil preferences and morphological diversity of goldenrods (Solidago L.) from south-western Poland

Abstract

Species from genus Solidago are exceptionally successful worldwide invaders from North America [1]. Among about 120 Solidago species three are invaders, which so far have conquered Europe, large parts of Asia, Australia and New Zealand [2].In central Europe five representatives of the Solidago genus are found. Only one species (S. virgaurea L.) is native, while the other four are of American origin, namely: S. gigantea Aiton, S. canadensis L., S. altissima L. [S. canadensis var. scabra (Muhl.) Torr. and Gray] and S. graminifolia (L.) Elliot [3]. Three of the introduced taxa (S. gigantea, S. canadensis and S. altissima) are invasive and morphologically similar to each other. Their taxonomic status in Europe has been discussed [3][4][5][6][7][8]. The range of the fourth alien species, S. graminifolia, is small and limited to few locations in Europe [9,10].The basic chromosome number in Solidago species is x = 9. S. virgaurea and S. graminifolia are diploids (2n = 18). S. canadensis consists of diploid (2n = 18) and tetraploid plants (2n = 36), and S. altissima hexaploid (2n = 54), triploid (2n = 27) and tetraploid (2n = 36) plants of native origin [11,12]. While in Europe only diploid plants of these species are noted [7,13], in case of Solidago altissima the occurrence of additional Bchromosomes was observed [14,15]. Solidago gigantea occurs in three different cytotypes: diploid (2n = 18), tetraploid (2n = 36) and hexaploid (2n = 54), which represent the whole S. gigantea complex in native range and has also been found in Europe [16]. However, according to current data [17][18][19] in Europe only tetraploid populations of S. gigantea are known. Therefore, based on this variety in chromosome number, considerable morphological variety in these taxa could be expected [20]. It could also include differentiation in traits related to invasiveness as, e.g. stem height or inflorescence size [21].Several hypotheses focus on the reasons why alien invasive plants are more successful than other plants in occupying new areas [22][23][24][25]. There are numerous confirmations, that plants in the new range could differ from their ancestors, including AbstractInvasive plants in their new range can differ from their ancestors, including traits ultimately influencing habitat preferences, competitiveness and dispersal ability. In Europe Solidago species are considered as one of the worst invaders of American origin. In this study the frequency of occurrence of Solidago species, their soil preferences and morphological diversity, in Silesia (southwestern Poland, Central Europe) were surveyed. On the basis of phytosociological relevés, made using the Braun-Blanquet method, in 75 plots, we determined the composition of species co-occurring with particular Solidago species. The height of ramets, as well as length and width of inflorescences of Solidago species were measured. We also determined the basic soil properties and noted the presence of trees overshading the ground vegetation. The compositional variation of vegetation and its r...

A performance comparison of sampling methods in the assessment of species composition patterns and environment–vegetation relationships in species-rich grasslands

“…The growth of Calamagrostis epigejos is enhanced under low-intensity management regime [68], and under moist and nutrient-rich conditions [69]. Solidago gigantea also shows tendency to occur in relatively moist sites [70] and it commonly thrives in abandoned or sporadically mown grasslands [71]. More frequent occurrence of Calamagrostis epigejos and Solidago gigantea in more wet sites may also be the effect of irregular mowing of these sites that might be omitted by farmers due to the unfavorable ground conditions.…”

Do the seeds of Solidago gigantea Aiton have physiological determinants of invasiveness?

“…The species colonizes a given area in the form of single plants, patches or dense canopies. The giant goldenrod is much more prevalent in south-western and central Poland (Szymura and Szymura 2013;Kołaczkowska 2012), and it occurs far less frequently in the north-eastern part of the country (Korniak et al 2012). …”

“…There are many reasons for the ecological success of invasive goldenrods in Europe, including their considerable ecological tolerance: both species colonize habitats characterized by diverse soil texture, pH or nutrient content (Szymura and Szymura 2013;Pu_ zyńska et al 2012). Goldenrod populations develop rapidly due to very high levels of competitiveness and their allelopathic effects (Abhilasha et al 2008;Meyer and Hull-Sanders 2008;Yuan et al 2012).…”

Patterns of plant invasions at small spatial scale correspond with that at the whole country scale

“…Length of residence time is significant for spread of invasive species -the probability that the log phase of invasion will start increases with the length of residence time (Kowarik 1995a;Sukkop and Wurzel 2003;Lockwood et al 2005;Groves 2006;Křivánek et al, 2006;Pyšek et al 2009). Szymura and Szymura (2013) claimed that predominance of one Solidago species over another is an effect of earlier establishment in the site of interest, which may explain the success of S. canadensis.…”

“…Both species increased their range after 1970 (Tokarska-Guzik 2005). Detailed study conducted by Szymura and Szymura (2013) in SW Poland, showed that S. gigantea was more numerous than other species of Solidago. S. canadensis and S. gigantea have very similar biologies, however they differ in urbanity indicator - Klotz et al (2002) found that S. gigantea is a moderately urbanophobous species and that S. canadensis is urbanoneutral.…”