The results of field survey, germination and correspondence analysis showed that the soil seed banks density ranged from 900 to 6,467 seeds m at 0-5 cm depth and 117 to 2,467 seeds m at 5-10 cm depth, with species richness of 7-14. Early successional species dominated the soil seed bank, while later successional species occurred only at low density. The similarity between soil seed bank and sta...

BACKGROUND Although the effect of water level on germination in soil seed banks has been documented in many ecosystems, the mechanism is not fully understood, and to date no empirical studies on this subject exist. Further, no work has been done on the effect of water level on seed banks of drying and saline-alkaline wetlands in alpine areas on the Tibetan Plateau. METHODOLOGY We examined the...

Seed banks are common characteristics to many plant species, which allow storage of genetic diversity in the soil as dormant seeds for various periods of time. We investigate an above-ground population following a Fisher-Wright model with selection coupled with a deterministic seed bank assuming the length of the seed bank is kept constant and the number of seeds is large. To assess the combine...

Soil seed banks serve as reservoirs for future plant communities, and when diverse and abundant can buffer vegetation communities against environmental fluctuations. Sparse seed banks, however, may lead to future declines of already rare species. Seed banks in wetland communities are often robust and can persist over long time periods making wetlands model systems for studying the spatial and t...

Seed banks are a common characteristics to many plant species, 1 which allow storage of genetic diversity in the soil as dormant seeds for various 2 periods of time. We investigate an above-ground population following a Fisher3 Wright model with selection coupled with a deterministic seed bank assuming 4 the length of the seed bank is kept constant and the number of seeds is large. 5 To assess ...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Seed survival in the soil contributes to population persistence and community diversity, creating a need for reliable measures of soil seed bank persistence. Several methods estimate soil seed bank persistence, most of which count seedlings emerging from soil samples. Seasonality, depth distribution and presence (or absence) in vegetation are then used to classify a species'...

Seed banks, the reserve of viable seeds dormant in the soil, function in several important roles in the population and community dynamics of plant communities. Identification of the seed bank can furnish information on the vegetation history of a habitat, predict the future composition of the plant community, and provide insight on the seed viability and biology of plant species. Although seed ...