Effects of litter on establishment of grassland plant species: the role of seed size and successional status

Jensen, Kai; Gutekunst, Kirstin

doi:10.1078/1439-1791-00179

Cited by 170 publications

(159 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…2 and 3) suggest that the accumulated litter suppresses germination and initial growth. The litter could reduce the amount of available light (e.g., Facelli and Pickett 1991;Jensen and Gutekunst 2003) and hinder the extension of seedlings through the litter (e.g., Bosy and Reader 1995;Rotundo and Aguiar 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Litter of an alien tree, Casuarina equisetifolia, inhibits seed germination and initial growth of a native tree on the Ogasawara Islands (subtropical oceanic islands)

Hata

Kato

Kachi

2010

Journal of Forest Research

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We investigated the effects of the accumulation of litter of an alien tree, Casuarina equisetifolia, on the initial establishment of Schima mertensiana, a tree native to the Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, in field and greenhouse experiments. The field experiment compared emergence of seedlings in forests dominated by C. equisetifolia with those in native forests, with and without litter removal. The greenhouse experiment compared seedling germination and biomass among 12 treatments that included two soil types (collected from the C. equisetifolia and native forests), two litter types (C. equisetifolia and native litter), and three amounts of litter (5, 15, or 45 g/pot). Significantly fewer S. mertensiana seedlings emerged at sites dominated by C. equisetifolia than at sites of native species in the field experiment. Litter removal tended to increase seedling emergence. Fewer and smaller S. mertensiana seedlings germinated with greater litter cover regardless of soil type or litter type in the greenhouse experiment. Our results demonstrate that C. equisetifolia litter suppresses germination and initial growth of S. mertensiana, and that the main cause of the suppression is the greater amount of litter accumulated under C. equisetifolia forest floor rather than factors such as the nature of the soil or litter between native and alien species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Litter of an alien tree, Casuarina equisetifolia, inhibits seed germination and initial growth of a native tree on the Ogasawara Islands (subtropical oceanic islands)

Hata

Kato

Kachi

2010

Journal of Forest Research

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“…Facelli and Pickett 1991) and can aVect seedling composition according to variation in seed size (e.g. Jensen and Gutekunst 2003). Red crabs regulate leaf litter cover and biomass (O'Dowd and Lake 1989; Green et al 1999, this study), so they could indirectly aVect seedling composition.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Recruitment dynamics in a rainforest seedling community: context-independent impact of a keystone consumer

2008

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The influence of keystone consumers on community structure is frequently context-dependent; the same species plays a central organising role in some situations, but not others. On Christmas Island, in the Indian Ocean, a single species of omnivorous land crab, Gecarcoidea natalis, dominates the forest floor across intact rainforest. We hypothesised that this consumer plays a key role in regulating seedling recruitment and in controlling litter dynamics on the island, independent of the type of vegetation in which it occurred. To test this hypothesis, we conducted crab exclusion experiments in two forest types on the island and followed the dynamics of seedling recruitment and litter processing for six years. To determine if these effects were likely to be general across the island, we compared land crab densities and seedling abundance and diversity at ten sites across island rainforest. Surveys across island rainforest showed that seedlings of species susceptible to predation by land crabs are consistently rare. Abundance and diversity of these species were negatively correlated to red crab abundance. Although red land crabs may be important determinants of seedling recruitment to the overstorey, differences in overstorey and seedling composition at the sites suggests that recruitment of vulnerable trees still occurs at a temporal scale exceeding that of this study. These "windows" of recruitment may be related to infrequent events that reduce the effects of land crabs. Our results suggest that unlike the context dependence of most keystone consumers in continental systems, a single consumer, the red land crab, consistently controls the dynamics of seedling recruitment across this island rainforest.

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“…This was probably due to competition. However, the negative relationship between the irradiance at the 20-cm level and number of birch seedlings cannot be interpreted well ecologically; in general, species typical for early stages of succession are limited by shading (e.g., Jensen and Gutekunst 2003).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tree seedlings: how do they establish in spontaneously developed forests? A study from a mountainous area in the Czech Republic

Dostálová

2008

Biodivers Conserv

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The aim of this study was to find out which tree species can establish in spontaneously developed forests (SDFs) on mesic stands and how many tree seedlings are present there. The influence of different factors was examined and an attempt made to find out if there are some general trends true for groups of species typical for different stages of succession or with different types of distribution. All tree seedlings present in 48 permanent plots were counted (100 m 2 ). The following factors were tested: altitude, slope and exposition, distance from the nearest forest, age and species composition of tree layer, species composition of herb layer, light conditions and soil reaction. The species composition was dependent on altitude and soil reaction. There were surprisingly high numbers of seedlings (in average 145 tree seedlings per 100 m 2 ) and species (in average 5) present in SDFs. Not only species common in the area were found, but also uncommon species were present there, although in low numbers. Nonspecific species are the best colonisers of SDFs, and the anemochorous trees are better colonisers than zoochorous ones. The establishment of different tree species is influenced by different factors. The SDFs most probably shift toward forest with a number of species in the tree layer. The dominant species tend to be spruce and maple, but species typical for early stages of succession will be common in these growths.

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Effects of litter on establishment of grassland plant species: the role of seed size and successional status

Cited by 170 publications

References 34 publications

Litter of an alien tree, Casuarina equisetifolia, inhibits seed germination and initial growth of a native tree on the Ogasawara Islands (subtropical oceanic islands)

Litter of an alien tree, Casuarina equisetifolia, inhibits seed germination and initial growth of a native tree on the Ogasawara Islands (subtropical oceanic islands)

Recruitment dynamics in a rainforest seedling community: context-independent impact of a keystone consumer

Tree seedlings: how do they establish in spontaneously developed forests? A study from a mountainous area in the Czech Republic

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