Plant-plant interactions as a mechanism structuring plant diversity in a Mediterranean semi-arid ecosystem.

ABSTRACT: Plant-plant interactions are among the fundamental processes that shape structure and functioning of arid and semi-arid plant communities. Despite the large amount of studies that have assessed the relationship between plant-plant interactions (i.e., facilitation and competition) and diversity, often researchers forget a third kind of interaction, known as allelopathy. We examined the effect of plant-plant interactions of three dominant species: the perennial grass Lygeum spartum, the allelopathic dwarf shrub Artemisia herba-alba, and the nurse shrub Salsola vermiculata, on plant diversity and species composition in a semi-arid ecosystem in NE Spain. Specifically, we quantified the interaction outcome (IO) based on species co-occurrence, we analyzed diversity by calcul

SUBMITTER: Arroyo AI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6102514 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature