Soil seed bank and seed germination of sand dunes vegetation in North Sinai – Egypt

Gad, Mariam Refaat Mohamed; Kelan, Saadia Shehata

doi:10.1016/j.aoas.2012.03.003

Cited by 7 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Many empirical studies have reported that the spatial distribution of SSBs is affected by well‐developed shrubs and ephemeral plant layers in desert areas because they are the main source of SSBs and also contribute to seed trapping and accumulation (Gad & Kelan, 2012). Our results indicate that the spatial patterns of SSBs correlated positively with shrubs within a specific range, but not with herbs (Table 2).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial patterns of soil seed banks and their relationships with above‐ground vegetation in an arid desert

Luo

Guo

Feng

et al. 2021

Applied Vegetation Science

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Questions What are the characteristics of the spatial patterns of soil seed banks (SSBs) at local scales? How does the spatial distribution of SSBs relate to above‐ground vegetation? Location The piedmont plain of the eastern slope of Gandur mountain, Wuhai, northwestern China. Methods A plot of 50 m × 50 m square, divided into 100 quadrats (5 m × 5 m) and 100 subquadrats (1 m × 1 m), was prepared to conduct a field survey of vegetation and SSB sampling. We analyzed the spatial pattern of 196 samples at different scales and directions with geostatistical analysis. The relationship between above‐ground vegetation and SSB was quantified by integrating geostatistics, point pattern analysis, and spatial comparison (IGPS). Results The SSB density in the study area was 404.5 ± 352 seeds·m−2. SSBs of shrub species and herbaceous species Ⅱ (occurring only below‐ground) had a moderate spatial autocorrelation, and their spatial dependence increased with increasing scale. The SSB of herbaceous species Ⅰ (occurring both above‐ground and below‐ground) had great spatial autocorrelation, and its spatial dependence showed an initial decrease and then increased. Furthermore, SSBs showed lower spatial heterogeneity in the prevailing wind direction than in other directions. The spatial patterns of SSBs of shrub species and herbaceous species Ⅰ correlated with shrubs within a specific range, but not with herbs, while the SSB of herbaceous species Ⅱ did not have a spatial relationship with above‐ground vegetation. Conclusion The spatial pattern of SSBs had scale dependence features, which exhibited clustered distribution at a certain scale, and were significantly correlated with above‐ground shrubs. Therefore, we suggest subsampling larger quadrats with smaller sample units near shrubs in desert areas. Our workflow seems efficient for determining the spatial pattern of SSBs at medium small scale in arid areas.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial patterns of soil seed banks and their relationships with above‐ground vegetation in an arid desert

Luo

Guo

Feng

et al. 2021

Applied Vegetation Science

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“…Soil moisture is the main factor restricting vegetation growth in arid and semi-arid areas (Hu et al, 2009;Morenode et al, 2011), especially desert regions, and it not only affects plant individual development and growth types (Gad and Kelan, 2012) but also impacts plant species diversity, quantity and distribution (Kemp, 1983;Porporato et al, 2002). Soil moisture is also a critical component of water circulation in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum (Cowan, 1965) and is the basis for the determination of vegetation carrying capacity and the management of sandy soil moisture (Rodriguez-Iturbe et al, 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatio-temporal variation of soil moisture in a fixed dune at the southern edge of the Gurbantunggut Desert in Xinjiang, China

Zhu

Yang

et al. 2019

J. Arid Land

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Soil moisture is critical for vegetation growth in deserts. However, detailed data regarding the soil moisture distribution in space and time in the Gurbantunggut Desert of China have not yet been reported. In this study, we conducted a series of in situ observation experiments in a fixed sand dune at the southern edge of the Gurbantunggut Desert from February 2014 to October 2016, to explore the spatio-temporal variation of soil moisture content, investigate the impact of Haloxylon ammodendron (C. A. Mey.) Bungeon soil moisture content in its root zone, and examine the factors influencing the soil moisture spatial pattern. One-way analysis of variance, least significant difference tests and correlation analysis were used to analyze the data. The results revealed that the soil moisture content exhibited annual periodicity and the temporal variation of soil moisture content throughout a year could be divided into three periods, namely, a moisturegaining period, a moisture-losing period and a moisture-stable period. According to the temporal and spatial variability, the 0-400 cm soil profile could be divided into two layers: an active layer with moderate variability and a stable layer with weak variability. The temporal variability was larger than the spatial variability in the active layer, and the mean profile soil moisture content at different slope positions displayed the trend of decreasing with increasing relative height and mainly followed the order of interdune area>west and east slopes>slope top. The mean profile soil moisture content in the root zone of dead H. ammodendron individuals was significantly higher than that in the root zones of adult and young individuals, while the soil moisture content in the root zone of adult individuals was slightly higher than that in the root zone of young individuals with no significant difference. The spatial pattern of soil moisture was attributable to the combined effects of snowfall, vegetation and soil texture, whereas the effects of rainfall and evaporation were not significant. The findings may offer a foundation for the management of sandy soil moisture and vegetation restoration in arid areas.

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Decreased Constraints of Wind Erosion on Soil Seed Bank and Vegetation With the Stabilization of Sand Dune in Northern China

Yang,

Li,

et al. 2024

Land Degrad Dev

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While various measures have been taken to combat desertification and stabilize sand dunes, the persistence of “far and active sand dune” in northern China remains a great challenge. This study aimed to identify the primary driving factors that contribute to the stabilization of sand dunes within the Horqin Sandy Land. Our research investigated the richness and density of soil seed bank, seedlings, and vegetation communities across different slope positions in both active and stabilized sand dunes. Our results indicated that sand dune stabilization led to a significant increase in soil carbon and nitrogen contents, with increments of 0.09 ± 0.02 and 0.005 ± 0.001 g kg−1, respectively. Compared with active sand dune, the soil clay content and silt content in stabilized dune showed an increased rate of 23.59% and 30.43%, respectively, while the proportion of soil sand decreased significantly. Additionally, variations in the richness and density of seedlings and vegetation were observed across different slope positions, with lower leeward slopes exhibiting the most favorable conditions, hosting 11.4 ± 0.3 species in richness and 142.1 ± 5.4/m2, 303.4 ± 25.9/m2, and 37.2 ± 0.8/m2 in density for soil seed banks, seedlings, and vegetation, respectively. The soil seed bank showed a great potential for the regeneration of pioneer and annual plant species, particularly Agriophyllum squarrosum. Notably, our findings indicated a reduction in the influence of soil wind erosion intensity on the seed bank and vegetation during the stabilization process, as reflected by a 12% reduction in standardized total effects (STE). Conversely, the effects of soil temperature (STE ranging from 0.07 to 0.22), soil moisture (STE of −0.97 in stabilized dunes), and soil nitrogen content (STE of 0.28 in stabilized dunes) became more pronounced. These results underscore the importance of initially deploying mechanical sand barriers to manage active sand dunes, followed by the strategic planting of pioneer species, especially on the leeward slopes, to effectively promote the stabilization of the dunes.

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Soil seed bank and seed germination of sand dunes vegetation in North Sinai – Egypt

Cited by 7 publications

References 9 publications

Spatial patterns of soil seed banks and their relationships with above‐ground vegetation in an arid desert

Spatial patterns of soil seed banks and their relationships with above‐ground vegetation in an arid desert

Spatio-temporal variation of soil moisture in a fixed dune at the southern edge of the Gurbantunggut Desert in Xinjiang, China

Decreased Constraints of Wind Erosion on Soil Seed Bank and Vegetation With the Stabilization of Sand Dune in Northern China

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