The role of shrubs in spatially structuring the soil seed bank of perennial species in a semi-arid gypsum plant communit
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The role of shrubs in spatially structuring the soil seed bank of perennial species in a semi-arid gypsum plant community Ana Foronda . Yolanda Pueyo . Ramo´n Reine´ . Antonio I. Arroyo . Marı´a de la Luz Giner . Concepcio´n L. Alados
Received: 10 October 2018 / Accepted: 18 June 2020 Ó Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract The soil seed bank is crucial for the stability and regeneration of the specialised gypsum plant communities. The presence of shrubs influences the spatial structure of the soil seed bank by trapping more or fewer seeds depending on their physiognomic attributes or, for example, by providing seeds through the plants established under canopies. We aimed to unravel the potential role of different shrub species with diverse physiognomy in determining the spatial structure of the soil seed bank in a semi-arid gypsum Communicated by Alessandra Fidelis.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-020-01050-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. A. Foronda (&) Y. Pueyo A. I. Arroyo M. de la Luz Giner C. L. Alados Instituto Pirenaico de Ecologı´a - CSIC, Avda. Montan˜ana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain e-mail: [email protected]
plant community of NE Spain. We examined richness and abundance of the soil seed bank at different microsites associated with four dominant shrubs of different size-type (tall or short), and architecture (crawling-branched or erect). We found more considerable richness and abundance of seeds of perennial species within shrub canopies than in open areas. Specifically, the crawling-branched shrubs Gypsophila struthium and Helianthemum squamatum, and the tall erect shrub Ononis tridentata accumulated the most abundant soil seed banks of perennials, thus having an important structuring role. Conservation and restoration efforts should focus on gypsophyte shrubs (G. struthium, O. tridentata and H. squamatum), which can enhance community stability and regeneration through the formation of an abundant soil R. Reine´ Escuela Polite´cnica Superior - Universidad de Zaragoza, Ctra. Cuarte s/n, 22071 Huesca, Spain e-mail: [email protected]
Y. Pueyo e-mail: [email protected] A. I. Arroyo e-mail: [email protected] M. de la Luz Giner e-mail: [email protected] C. L. Alados e-mail: [email protected]
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Plant Ecol
seed bank of perennial species in gypsum plant communities. Keywords Complete seed bank Gypsophytes Perennial species Seed sink Seed trapping
Introduction The soil seed bank is an essential component of plant communities since it constitutes a reservoir in the soil of viable propagules ready to germinate or in a dormant state (Csontos 2007). It promotes diversity in plant communities, acting as a temporary buffer against unfavourable conditions that decrease plant survival and seed production (Venable and Brown 1988). Thus, the soil seed bank contributes to community regeneration processes (Luzuriaga et al. 2005; Martı´nez-
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