Robertson is a Waterways and LandOfficer with Melbourne Water (990 La Trobe St, Docklands, Vic. 3008; Email: dan.robertson@ melbournewater.com.au). This project arose from research into revegetation outcomes to inform improvement of revegetation practices along riparian areas by Melbourne Water.Summary To revegetate native plant communities, it is often cheaper to direct seed than to plant nursery-grown stock. However, the outcomes of direct seeding can be quite variable, and it is unclear whether direct seeding or planting is more likely to facilitate the restoration of diverse plant communities. To address this question, we compared the outcomes of each method across several recent riparian revegetation projects where both direct seeding and tube-stock planting were used. We surveyed riparian revegetation projects at seven sites within the greater Melbourne area that had been revegetated between 1 and 4 years previously. Sites were all on land previously used for agriculture or degraded public land and ranged in environmental and climatic conditions. Woody plant density, establishment of target species, species richness, species diversity (evenness) and plant heights were assessed. Direct seeding tended to result in higher plant densities and similar species richness, but lower rates of species establishment and diversity compared with planting. A median of 67% of target species established via direct seeding compared with 100% for planting, with direct seeded areas often dominated by one or two species. In general, overall revegetation outcomes were often driven by climatic and site factors, rather than revegetation method. We suggest that to achieve good restoration outcomes from revegetation in riparian areas, a bet-hedging or combined approach using both sowing and planting may be the best strategy.
This article details how youth benefit from a horse show judges’ training program. While judging is subjective, with training, judges can be more consistent in their placings, with the better horses and/or riders being placed at the top of the class. With qualified judges, youth can be more confident that they will be evaluated in a fair and consistent manner during each show all season long.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.