Potential use of pine plantations to restore native forests in a highly fragmented river basin

Abstract

Abstract• In forests, the substitution of broadleaf species by conifers can reduce biodiversity because coniferous forests generally provide less diverse vascular understories than broadleaf forests. However, in some cases, former pine plantations might be useful for restoring native forests. We compared plant species composition on the plot scale in natural beech and mixed oak forests with that in plantations of Pinus radiata. Links between plant diversity and landscape parameters (patch size, fractal dimension and distance to the nearest patch of the same type) were investigated.• The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of pine plantations for restoring native diversity in a zone where native forests are very fragmented.• Similar to oak forests, plant diversity in pine plantations was high, mainly due to the presence of generalist species. Some species characteristic of oak forests also appeared in pine plantations, suggesting the onset of natural forest regeneration.• These results suggest that pine plantations could be used to promote natural regeneration of original oak forests. Moreover, residual native stands should be conserved as important sources of native species and their seeds. Mots-clés :hêtre / diversité biologique / paysage / chêne / plantation de pins / gestion durable Résumé -Usage possible des plantations de pins pour restaurer les forêts naturelles dans un bassin hydrographique très fragmenté.• Dans les forêts, la substitution des espèces feuillues par des conifères peut réduire la biodiversité, car les forêts de conifères ne présentent pas généralement un sous bois aussi diversifié que les forêts feuillues. Toutefois, dans certains cas, les anciennes plantations de pins pourraient être utiles pour la restauration des forêts naturelles. Nous avons comparé la composition des espèces végétales à l'échelle de la parcelle en hêtraie naturelle et chênaie mixte de même que dans les plantations de Pinus radiata. Les liens entre diversité végétale et paramètres du paysage (taille des bouquets, dimension fractale, et distance du plus proche bouquet de même type) ont été étudiés.• L'objectif de cette étude était d'évaluer le recours à des plantations de pin pour le rétablissement de la diversité naturelle dans une zone où les forêts sont très fragmentées.• La diversité végétale des pinèdes, similaire à celle des chênaies, était élevée, principalement en raison de la présence d'espèces généralistes. Certaines espèces caractéristiques des chênaies sont aussi apparues dans les plantations de pins, ce qui suggère l'apparition d'une régénération de la forêt naturelle.• Ces résultats suggèrent que les plantations de pins pourraient être utilisées pour promouvoir la régénération naturelle des chênaies originelles. En outre, les peuplements résiduels originels devraient être conservés comme sources importantes d'espèces naturelles et de leurs graines.

Does plantation forestry restore biodiversity or create green deserts? A synthesis of the effects of land-use transitions on plant species richness

“…Lower diversity in plantations may also be due to the paucity of seed sources (Gonzales and Nakashizuka 2010) and by changes in decomposition rates and litter fall with plantation establishment (Barlow et al 2007b). In general, plantations contain a subset of primary forest species (FAO 2006), with lower levels of diversity and richness (Pomeroy and Dranzoa 1997;Fahy and Gormally 1998;Yirdaw 2001), but may be dependant upon adjacent or nearby forests for regeneration (Paritsis and Aizen 2008;Onaindia and Mitxelena 2009). As indicated by our results and discussed below, plantations (particularly young plantations) also tend to favor establishment of ruderal or exotic species over large, gravity dispersed or late seral species, leading to a change in species composition often not reflected in changes in overall species richness (Ito et al 2004;Paritsis and Aizen 2008).…”

Could artificial reforestations provide as much production and diversity of fungal species as natural forest stands in marginal Mediterranean areas?

“…Furthermore, these Pinus reforestations may be an adequate intermediate stage in the recovery of the native vegetation in degraded and abandoned farmlands (Onaindia and Mitxelena, 2009). …”

Native Plant Diversity and Composition Across a Pinus radiata D.Don Plantation Landscape in South-Central Chile—The Impact of Plantation Age, Logging Roads and Alien Species

“…To maintain native biodiversity, plant species either have to persist in phases of unsuitable conditions or mechanical disturbance in plantations or have to be able to re-colonize after local extirpation. Succession within plantations was often found to be positive for native species establishment and community restoration due to the promotion of natural habitat conditions with time [32][33][34][35]. Early phases, though, have been less studied even though they are considered to have the most severe effects on forest species that can determine further succession [36].…”