The functional ecology of soil seed banks.

Thompson, Ken; Fenner, M.

doi:10.1079/9780851994321.0215

Cited by 253 publications

(247 citation statements)

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“…Seed bank dynamics-Unlike several annual plant species (Fenner, 1985;Thompson, 1992), Floerkea does not maintain a long-term, persistent soil seed bank. After seedling emergence in April and May, few seeds are still present on/in the soil.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal dynamics ofFloerkea proserpinacoides(Limnanthaceae), an annual plant of the deciduous forest of eastern North America

Houle

Mckenna

Lapointe³

2001

American J of Botany

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Because environmental filters are temporally and spatially heterogeneous, there often is a lack of significant relationship between the spatial patterns of successive life stages in plant populations. In this study, we determined the spatiotemporal relationships between different life stages in two populations of an annual plant of the deciduous forests of eastern North America, Floerkea proserpinacoides. Demographic surveys were done over a 4-yr period, and experiments were performed in the field and under controlled conditions to test for the effects of various environmental factors on population dynamics. There was a general lack of relationship between the spatial patterns of seed bank and seedling density, and a lack of similarity between their spatial correlograms. This was related mostly to the effects of spatially variable environmental filters operating on germination and emergence. However, environmental filters acting on plant survival were stable through time and contributed to stabilize the density and spatial patterns of the populations. Despite density-dependent presenescence mortality, spatial patterns of seedlings and mature individuals were similar and their correlograms were alike, suggesting that mortality did not fully compensate for density. Estimated fecundity was negatively correlated with population density over the study period. Although flower production started only 2-3 wk after emergence, seed maturation mostly occurred at the end of the life cycle, just before the onset of plant senescence. Yet, individual fecundity was low for an annual plant, i.e., 3.0 Ϯ 0.5 mature seeds/plant (mean Ϯ 1 SE). Seed predation by vertebrates was not significant. Low soil moisture had little effect on the total number of seeds germinating, although it slowed down the germination process. In quadrats where leaf litter was experimentally doubled, seedling emergence was lower than in control quadrats; in quadrats where leaf litter was completely removed, emergence did not differ from that in control quadrats. Susceptibility to drought stress was higher for seedlings than for mature plants. Although the species does not maintain a long-term persistent soil seed bank, other factors, such as density-dependent fecundity and autogamy, may temper population fluctuations through time and reduce the probability of local extinction.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal dynamics ofFloerkea proserpinacoides(Limnanthaceae), an annual plant of the deciduous forest of eastern North America

Houle

Mckenna

Lapointe³

2001

American J of Botany

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“…many decades or centuries, are very rare, and do not always seem to be reliable (Bakker et al, 1996b). More specifically, most typical shade-tolerant forest plant species, like the climax tropical tree species in the dry Afromontane forests of Ethiopia, do not accumulate persistent seed banks (Thompson, 1992; Demel Teketay and Granström, 1995; Demel Teketay, 1996). Even those species with persistent soil seed banks do not survive a short period of other land uses after conversion (Bossuyt et al, 1999).…”

Section: Soil Seed Banks In Degraded Lands and Agroecosystemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Restoration of native forest flora in the degraded highlands of Ethiopia: Constraints and opportunities

Lemenih¹,

Teketay

2005

SEJS

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ABSTRACT:Wide spread deforestation and subsequent degradation is severely threatening the natural forest resources in Ethiopia. What is imperatively and urgently needed today is ecological restoration. In order for ecological restoration to be successful and cost effective, critical analyses of possible constraints and available opportunities are crucial. Such Knowledge increases our understandings of ecosystem responses and a more reasonable prediction of where and why restoration efforts will be difficult or possible. These understandings will also improve the decisionsupport systems for the kind of restoration strategies or tools to apply and what kind of management techniques to follow. Available literature indicated that scarcity or complete absence of viable soil seed banks under natural environments and in environments affected by humans, such as abandoned farmlands, poor seed rain/dispersal and site impoverishment would be severe limitations to ecological restoration in the country. On the other hand, land abandonment due to marginalization followed by the establishment of plantation forests as foster crops are opportunities that could be utilized for rapid and productive restoration of the vast degraded ecosystems in the country. Nevertheless, successful utilities of these management options certainly demand conservation of the remnant natural forests to serve as propagule donors. Hence, conservation of the scattered remnant forests in the country is the major prerequisite for successful future restoration ventures.

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“…For V. spinulosa investment in sexual reproduction may therefore be vital under circumstances of unpredictable environmental conditions for long-distance dispersal, while the species relies more heavily on local dispersal of asexual clones through tuber survival (Santamaria, 2002). The restricted sample size gave equivocal results on the degree of investment in sexual reproduction because of our inability to predict the sex of plants, as measured by the dry weight of mature fruit production, but the indications are that investment in sexual reproduction could be affected by shortening the growth season, as found in V. natans (Thompson, 1992). The results of these two experiments together suggest that reductions in the period of inundation in a largely annual species (V. natans) reduce investment in sexual reproduction and in a perennial species (V. spinulosa) in over-wintering tuber mass, implying that especially earlier desiccation of the Yangtze River wetlands in autumn could affect recruitment of both species of submerged macrophyte, despite their differing reproduction strategies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Effects of the length of inundation periods on investment in tuber biomass and sexual reproduction byVallisneria spinulosaS.Z. Yan Ramets

Fox

Meng

Liu

et al. 2014

Knowl. Managt. Aquatic Ecosyst.

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Key-words:China, submerged plant reproduction, Three Gorges Dam, vegetative reproduction, Yangtze River Modification and reductions in flows are reducing inundation times in some Yangtze River wetlands, potentially affecting the growth of submerged macrophytes. The effects of shortening the inundation period from April to October (control) to April to September (treatment) were tested on the production of surface and below-ground tubers and fruits in individual Vallisneria spinulosa ramets in microcosm experiments. Mean numbers of below-ground tubers produced did not differ significantly between treatments, but individual tuber dry mass was significantly greater when harvested in October compared with plants harvested in September. Significantly more surface tubers were initiated by the ramets in the later harvest, but these did not differ in dry mass. Fewer ramets had initiated sexual reproduction by the September harvest compared with the October harvest. Almost all October fruits were mature, while the ratio of mature to unripe fruits was significantly greater than in September. There was no support for the hypothesis that more tubers were initiated deeper in the substrate with a longer inundation period to avoid predation by fish or birds. Based on these results, shortening of the inundation periods experienced by Vallisneria spinulosa plants in Yangtze River ephemeral wetlands may reduce the dry biomass of below-ground tubers and the production of surface tubers in this keystone macrophyte. RÉSUMÉEffets de la durée de la période d'inondation sur l'investissement dans la biomasse des tubercules et la reproduction sexuée chez les ramets de Vallisneria spinulosa S.Z. Yan Mots-clés :Chine, reproduction plantes submergées, Barrage des Trois Gorges, La modification et la réduction des débits réduisent les temps d'inondation dans certaines zones humides du fleuve Yangtsé, affectant potentiellement la croissance des macrophytes submergés. Les effets de la réduction de la durée de l'inondation d'avril à octobre (contrôle) à avril à septembre (traitement) ont été testés sur la production de tubercules de surface et souterrains et les fruits dans les différents ramets de Vallisneria spinulosa par des expériences en microcosmes. Le nombre moyen de tubercules souterrains produits ne diffère pas significativement entre les traitements, mais la masse sèche de tubercule était reproduction végétative, Yangtsé significativement plus élevée lors de la récolte en octobre par rapport aux plantes récoltées en septembre. Significativement plus de tubercules de surface étaient formés par les ramets lors de la récolte tardive, mais ceux-ci ne diffèrent pas en masse sèche. Peu de ramets avaient entamé une reproduction sexuée lors de la récolte de septembre par rapport à celle d'octobre. Presque tous les fruits en octobre étaient matures et la proportion des fruits mûrs était significativement plus élevée qu'en septembre. Rien ne confirme l'hypothèse que plus de tubercules ont été formés plus profondément dans le subst...

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The functional ecology of soil seed banks.

Abstract: This chapter discusses seed persistence in the soil.

Cited by 253 publications

References 0 publications

Spatiotemporal dynamics ofFloerkea proserpinacoides(Limnanthaceae), an annual plant of the deciduous forest of eastern North America

Spatiotemporal dynamics ofFloerkea proserpinacoides(Limnanthaceae), an annual plant of the deciduous forest of eastern North America

Restoration of native forest flora in the degraded highlands of Ethiopia: Constraints and opportunities

Effects of the length of inundation periods on investment in tuber biomass and sexual reproduction byVallisneria spinulosaS.Z. Yan Ramets

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