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Is it best to add native shrubs to a coastal sage scrub restoration project as seeds or as seedlings? PLoS One 2022; 17:e0262410. [PMID: 35134054 PMCID: PMC8824352 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0262410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecological restoration frequently involves the addition of native plants, but the effectiveness (in terms of plant growth, plant survival, and cost) of using seeds versus container plants has not been studied in many plant communities. It is also not known if plant success would vary by species or based on functional traits. To answer these questions, we added several shrub species to a coastal sage scrub restoration site as seeds or as seedlings in a randomized block design. We measured percent cover, density, species richness, size, survival, and costs. Over the two years of the study, shrubs added to the site as seeds grew more and continued to have greater density than plants added from containers. Seeded plots also had greater native species richness than planted plots. However, shrubs from containers had higher survival rates, and percent cover was comparable between the planted and seeded treatments. Responses varied by species depending on functional traits, with deep-rooted evergreen species establishing better from container plants. Our cost analysis showed that it is more expensive to use container plants than seed, with most of the costs attributed to labor and supplies needed to grow plants. Our measurements of shrub density, survival, species richness, and growth in two years in our experimental plots lead us to conclude that coastal sage scrub restoration with seeds is optimal for increasing density and species richness with limited funds, yet the addition of some species from container plants may be necessary if key species are desired as part of the project objectives.
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Funk JL, Parker IM, Matzek V, Flory SL, Aschehoug ET, D’Antonio CM, Dawson W, Thomson DM, Valliere J. Keys to enhancing the value of invasion ecology research for management. Biol Invasions 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10530-020-02267-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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Lortie CJ, St John J, Spangler W. Do or do not. There is no try in restoration ecology. Restor Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.12994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J. Lortie
- Department of BiologyYork University Toronto Ontario M3J1P3 Canada
- The National Center for Ecological Analysis and SynthesisUniversity of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara CA 93101 U.S.A
| | - Julie St John
- California Society for Ecological Restoration, 515 N. Desert Stravenue Tucson AZ 85711 U.S.A
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