A review of similarity between seed bank and standing vegetation across ecosystems

Hopfensperger, Kristine N.

doi:10.1111/j.2007.0030-1299.15818.x

Cited by 108 publications

(180 citation statements)

References 115 publications

(35 reference statements)

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“…Soil seed banks of forests generally exhibit lower species diversity and seed densities than those present in other ecosystems (Kalamees & Zobel 1998, Hopfensperger 2007, Bossuyt & Honnay 2008. Deciduous, young or managed forests are characterized by larger seed numbers and greater species richness than coniferous, older or unmanaged forests (Donelan & Thompson 1980, Bossuyt & Hermy 2001, Godefroid et al 2006, Ebrecht & Schmidt 2008, Plue et al 2010.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Species of early or middle successional stages are light demanding species, adapted to disturbances, and able to form a persistent soil seed bank (Donelan & Thompson 1980, Bossuyt et al 2002, Godefroid et al 2006. Hopfensperger (2007) suggested that pioneer species, present in early successional stages, can form a persistent seed bank at the beginning of succession to woodland. Seeds of ancient, shade-tolerant forest species, shrubs and tree species in general, are not well represented in the soil seed bank, because the seeds of these species do not remain viable for long (Donelan & Thompson 1980, Bossuyt & Hermy 2001.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, pioneer tree species exhibit irregular seed production patterns (mast years -Sarvas 1952, Bjorkbom 1967, Holm 1994, Osumi & Sakurai 1997, Sperens 1997, Hynynen et al 2010. A question that arises is whether pioneer tree species have the potential to regenerate from a soil seed bank in non-mast years, as shown by Hopfensperger (2007) for pioneer species. Currently little is known about the capacity of pioneer tree species in European temperate forests to establish seed banks, or how long their seeds persist in soil.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Soil seed banks of pioneer tree species in European temperate forests: a review

Tiebel¹,

Huth²,

Wagner³

2018

iForest

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The ability of short-lived tree species such as birch, alder, willow, poplar and rowan to form even a short-term soil seed bank is discussed controversially in the literature. Soil seed banks are an important component of succession and regeneration in ecosystems. Following disturbance, buried viable seeds germinate and the seedlings that establish cover the disturbed, exposed soil surfaces. The objective of this study was to review the literature on soil seed bank research carried out in central and north-west European temperate forests to provide an overview of the ability of pioneer tree species to form a viable seed bank. The review of 33 publications revealed that birch is the only pioneer tree species of temperate forests with longer-lived seeds, persisting in the soil for 1-5 years. Birch seeds remain viable in deeper soil layers (5-10 cm), so birch may be assigned to the short-term persistent soil seed bank type. The seeds of alder, willow and poplar would appear to be short-lived. Maximum seed densities of all tree species were found in the upper soil layers. With increasing soil depth, seed density declined. Viable seeds of rowan were not detected in any of the soil seed bank studies, although seed trees were present. We found that in spite of the capacity for long seed dispersal distances, high densities of birch, alder and willow seeds were only observed in close proximity to seed trees. The higher the numbers of seed trees, the higher the seed densities in soils. Maximum seed densities were recorded during and shortly after seed rains had occurred. Our results reveal that a birch seed bank may compensate for years of low seed production levels. However, as the seed bank is only short-term persistent, it must be supplemented by fresh seeds from surrounding seed trees as often as possible to guarantee a continuous capacity for regeneration.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Soil seed banks of pioneer tree species in European temperate forests: a review

Tiebel¹,

Huth²,

Wagner³

2018

iForest

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“…Classical studies on soil seed banks concentrate mainly on their longevity, richness and diversity in relation to aboveground vegetation in early or late successional communities within almost all kinds of ecosystems (e.g. Bossuyt and Hermy 2001;Hopfensperger 2007). In most seed bank studies, animals are taken into consideration only as factors causing seed mortality (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Endozoochory by European bison influences the build-up of the soil seed bank in subcontinental coniferous forest

Jaroszewicz

2013

Eur J Forest Res

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The faeces of large herbivores include viable seeds of many plant species. With dung decomposition, some seeds migrate into the soil and influence seed bank build-up. However, only a few papers report evidence of this process, and only from grasslands. In forest studies, this subject has so far been neglected. Therefore, I ask in this paper whether seeds present in the dung of European bison migrate to the forest soil seed bank and influence its buildup. I sampled soil from underneath European bison dung pats and from surrounding areas (control samples). Samples were divided into shallow (0-5 cm) and deep (5-10 cm) series. Soil seed bank content was studied in the greenhouse for 2 years. The shallow seed bank under dung pats was characterized by the highest species richness (49 species) and seed density ([2,000 m -2 ). Urtica dioica, Juncus effusus and Carex remota showed a demonstrable increase in seed density in the shallow seed bank underneath dung. Three years after dung deposition, seeds of endozoochoric origin influenced the soil seed bank of coniferous forest. U. dioica, J. effusus, C. remota and other species of deciduous forests and grasslands (Agrostis capillaris, Milium effusum, Polygonum hydropiper, Polygonum mite, Scrophularia nodosa, Stachys sylvatica, Veronica chamaedrys) caused an increase in seed density (by 61 %) and species richness (by 33 %) of the shallow soil seed bank underneath dung in comparison with the control soil seed bank.

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“…Clark et al [14] reviewed the forest soil seed bank literature (90 studies) from 1969 to 1998 and found seeds of woody plants to be very rare, while those of herbaceous taxa were common. Hopfensperger [15] reviewed 108 articles published between 1945 and 2006 on the similarity between above and belowground species composition and found lower similarities in forests than in grasslands and in wetlands. Another comprehensive review from Europe also showed low similarities between forest-soil seed banks and standing vegetation [16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Large Sample Area and Size Are Needed for Forest Soil Seed Bank Studies to Ensure Low Discrepancy with Standing Vegetation

Shen

Liu

et al. 2014

PLoS ONE

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A large number of small-sized samples invariably shows that woody species are absent from forest soil seed banks, leading to a large discrepancy with the seedling bank on the forest floor. We ask: 1) Does this conventional sampling strategy limit the detection of seeds of woody species? 2) Are large sample areas and sample sizes needed for higher recovery of seeds of woody species? We collected 100 samples that were 10 cm (length) ×10 cm (width) ×10 cm (depth), referred to as larger number of small-sized samples (LNSS) in a 1 ha forest plot, and placed them to germinate in a greenhouse, and collected 30 samples that were 1 m×1 m×10 cm, referred to as small number of large-sized samples (SNLS) and placed them (10 each) in a nearby secondary forest, shrub land and grass land. Only 15.7% of woody plant species of the forest stand were detected by the 100 LNSS, contrasting with 22.9%, 37.3% and 20.5% woody plant species being detected by SNLS in the secondary forest, shrub land and grassland, respectively. The increased number of species vs. sampled areas confirmed power-law relationships for forest stand, the LNSS and SNLS at all three recipient sites. Our results, although based on one forest, indicate that conventional LNSS did not yield a high percentage of detection for woody species, but SNLS strategy yielded a higher percentage of detection for woody species in the seed bank if samples were exposed to a better field germination environment. A 4 m2 minimum sample area derived from power equations is larger than the sampled area in most studies in the literature. Increased sample size also is needed to obtain an increased sample area if the number of samples is to remain relatively low.

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A review of similarity between seed bank and standing vegetation across ecosystems

Cited by 108 publications

References 115 publications

Soil seed banks of pioneer tree species in European temperate forests: a review

Soil seed banks of pioneer tree species in European temperate forests: a review

Endozoochory by European bison influences the build-up of the soil seed bank in subcontinental coniferous forest

Large Sample Area and Size Are Needed for Forest Soil Seed Bank Studies to Ensure Low Discrepancy with Standing Vegetation

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