H. Rowe, Tiffany A. Sprague, J. Broatch, D. Gruber, Debbie Langenfeld, L. Rivera
{"title":"Lessons Learned 5+ Years After Transplanting and Seeding Restoration Sites in the Sonoran Desert, U.S.A.","authors":"H. Rowe, Tiffany A. Sprague, J. Broatch, D. Gruber, Debbie Langenfeld, L. Rivera","doi":"10.1637/0003-0031-184.2.129","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Recovery of degraded lands in arid environments is especially challenging due to difficulty of matching ideal conditions to seed germination requirements and reduced native soil seed banks. Restoration practitioners try to overcome these challenges through seeding and site preparation treatments. In the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, Scottsdale, Arizona, the focus for restoring old roads was on seeding, cactus transplants, and soil treatments (either ripping or adding soil from nearby construction areas). Here we evaluated the success of these restoration sites 5–8 y after project completion. We compared vegetation and ground cover on eight roads that received a combination of these restoration treatments with adjacent reference areas. Plant cover was similar between the restoration and reference plots, but plant composition was different. The restoration plots contained more cacti due to cactus transplants, whereas the reference areas contained more shrub cover. The number of native plant species was greater in the reference areas than in the restoration plots. Seeding treatment had little effect, with only five of 11 seeded species appearing in plots, and only one species, Bouteloua aristidoides, appeared in both treatments that included seeding. Although cacti may have contributed to overall plant cover, they did not appear to aid establishment of other plants. Our findings suggest more interventions are likely required for the restoration and reference plant communities to converge in arid environments. We suggest considering multiple seeding treatments that will maximize the potential for ideal germination conditions and additional local interventions that may help accumulate litter and protect seeds.","PeriodicalId":50802,"journal":{"name":"American Midland Naturalist","volume":"184 1","pages":"129 - 148"},"PeriodicalIF":0.6000,"publicationDate":"2020-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"2","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"American Midland Naturalist","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1637/0003-0031-184.2.129","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"Agricultural and Biological Sciences","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 2
Abstract
Abstract. Recovery of degraded lands in arid environments is especially challenging due to difficulty of matching ideal conditions to seed germination requirements and reduced native soil seed banks. Restoration practitioners try to overcome these challenges through seeding and site preparation treatments. In the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, Scottsdale, Arizona, the focus for restoring old roads was on seeding, cactus transplants, and soil treatments (either ripping or adding soil from nearby construction areas). Here we evaluated the success of these restoration sites 5–8 y after project completion. We compared vegetation and ground cover on eight roads that received a combination of these restoration treatments with adjacent reference areas. Plant cover was similar between the restoration and reference plots, but plant composition was different. The restoration plots contained more cacti due to cactus transplants, whereas the reference areas contained more shrub cover. The number of native plant species was greater in the reference areas than in the restoration plots. Seeding treatment had little effect, with only five of 11 seeded species appearing in plots, and only one species, Bouteloua aristidoides, appeared in both treatments that included seeding. Although cacti may have contributed to overall plant cover, they did not appear to aid establishment of other plants. Our findings suggest more interventions are likely required for the restoration and reference plant communities to converge in arid environments. We suggest considering multiple seeding treatments that will maximize the potential for ideal germination conditions and additional local interventions that may help accumulate litter and protect seeds.
期刊介绍:
The American Midland Naturalist has been published for 90 years by the University of Notre Dame. The connotations of Midland and Naturalist have broadened and its geographic coverage now includes North America with occasional articles from other continents. The old image of naturalist has changed and the journal publishes what Charles Elton aptly termed "scientific natural history" including field and experimental biology. Its significance and breadth of coverage are evident in that the American Midland Naturalist is among the most frequently cited journals in publications on ecology, mammalogy, herpetology, ornithology, ichthyology, parasitology, aquatic and invertebrate biology and other biological disciplines.