Aim: Invasion success of non-native plants is known to be enhanced by high values in several performance-related traits. As most studies have explored the traits in isolation, we do not know whether improved performance of invaders in some traits is negatively related to performance in other traits. Here, we examine associations between the alien success of Central European grassland species and several traits of generative and vegetative reproduction. We asked which reproductive characteristics are most important for alien success. We also investigated whether the most widespread non-native species succeeded due to a weakened trade-off between the traits.Location: Global with respect to alien success, and Central European with respect to origin of study species. Methods:In greenhouse and garden conditions we measured traits of generative (seed mass, reproductive output, germination delay, germination rate, seedling weight) and vegetative reproduction (number and size of modules) of 85 perennial species native to Europe. We also compiled information on the 'success' of these species in exotic ranges from the Global Compendium of Weeds. Results:After accounting for the effect of propagule pressure (which explained 30% of variance in the data), alien success was significantly and positively associated with germination rate, reproductive output and seedling weight, and with the product of these traits (termed generative reproduction), which explained 5%-13% of variance in the data. The best predictor of success was vegetative reproduction (product of module number and weight), which explained 19% of variance. However, more successful species resembled the less successful ones in following similar associations between the traits, such as the negative relationship between number and weight of modules or a non-significant relationship between generative and vegetative reproduction. Main conclusions:High values of generative and vegetative reproduction pre-adapt grassland perennial plants from Central Europe for global success. The success is, however, driven by an independent effect of the two reproductive modes and not by a weakened trade-off between them.
So far, the principal force shaping local plant abundance patterns remains unclear. Rarity can result not only from poor competitive ability or from small vegetative or generative reproduction, but also from strong self‐limitation. The same mechanisms can drive species‐specific overyielding, that is, increased species productivity at high community diversity. Rare species can then benefit more (i.e., overyield to a larger extent) from growing in species‐rich communities because of altered competitive hierarchies or smaller conspecific frequencies. Here, we test which mechanism is the most important determinant of species rarity and of species‐specific productivity across a diversity gradient ranging from 1‐ to 60‐species plots. For that, we measured vegetative growth, competitive ability (competitive effect), and negative frequency dependence for 49 perennial grassland species from Central Europe. We then linked these characteristics with species abundance (measured as species biomass from 60‐species plots) and with species‐specific overyielding in The Jena Experiment. Species with higher rates of vegetative growth (when grown without neighbours) were also more abundant in the Jena Experiment. Larger species‐specific overyielding was then associated with a stronger negative frequency dependence. As species with greater vegetative growth were also more self‐limited, larger overyielding in species‐rich communities was characteristic for common rather than for rare species, refuting our initial hypothesis. Finally, path analysis indicated that species with poor capacity to suppress neighbours also profited more from growing in diverse communities. Synthesis. Our results identify key mechanisms driving abundance and productivity of species in synthetic communities differing in species richness. While vegetative reproduction was closely associated with abundance, intraspecific interactions (strength of negative frequency dependence) shaped species productivity across a richness gradient. Our study sheds light on the abundance patterns of species and their influence on community functions, such as biomass production, of species‐rich and ‐poor vegetation.
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