Diversity and composition of vegetation and soil seed banks after sand dune restoration by oil mulching and plantations.

ABSTRACT: Soil seed bank (SSB) is valuable reserves of seeds hidden in the soil and are especially important for the preservation and establishment of vegetation under adverse environmental conditions. However, there is a lack of knowledge on the effects of restoration measures on SSB, especially in arid ecosystems. Here, we assess the impacts of oil mulching (1 and 3 years after mulching) and plantations (15-year-old) on the diversity and composition of SSB and aboveground vegetation (AGV) in comparison with those in non-restored areas (i.e., control). Based on the results, species richness was poor in the studied area (36 species belonging to 16 families), with a lower contribution of SSB than of AGV (11 and 34 species, respectively). The largest number of exclusive species was observed in the pla

SUBMITTER: Jalilian B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11762977 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature