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In Site Soil Seed-Banks: Size, Composition and Persistence across Tropical Successional Stages

Authors :
Julieta Benitez-Malvido
Source :
Plants, Vol 12, Iss 15, p 2760 (2023)
Publication Year :
2023
Publisher :
MDPI AG, 2023.

Abstract

I investigated the size, composition and persistence of the seed-bank in primary forests, secondary forests and old-fields in southern Mexico. I also assessed the contribution of the seed-bank to regeneration relative to other propagule sources. In all habitats, I removed by hand all plants and litter and excluded the seed-rain. For one year, I counted the number of plant species (5–50 cm tall) emerged and grouped them into different growth-forms: trees, shrubs, palms, herbs, woody lianas, epiphytes and hemi-epiphytes. A total of 95 species emerged. The seed-bank size, composition and persistence showed strong variation among successional stages. Emergence was low for primary and secondary forests, but high for old-fields (19, 26, and 68 plants per m−2, respectively). Herbs were the most abundant in the seed-bank and palms the less. Time had a negative effect on seed-bank size in primary forests and old-fields; whereas for secondary forests size remained constant throughout the year. The number of emerged plants in different growth-forms changed significantly across time for all successional stages. Overall, the seed-bank provided a greater number of plants in old-fields relative to other propagule sources combined. The results showed that forest modification alters the input of propagules throughout the seed-bank for different plant growth-forms.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
22237747
Volume :
12
Issue :
15
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Plants
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.95652a06806041d8a918982bb967cc42
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12152760