Experimental Determination of Seed Bank Age Structure in the Winter Annual Collinsia Verna
1991
Kalisz, Susan
Data on survival in and emergence from soil seed banks are scarce for natural plant populations. In this paper I present a new experimental method for quantifying soil seed bank dynamics in the field and data derived from this method describing the age structure of the seed bank for the winter annual Collinsia verna. The roles of spatial and temporal variation in seed bank formation were investigated using a replicated design arrayed along three transects in the study site. Emergence from and persistence in the seed bank were monitored for 3 yr using experimental seed banks containing seeds of the same age arrayed along each of the three transects. In addition, replicate estimates of survivorship and fecundity of naturally emerging plants were monitored in quadrats arrayed along each of the three transects. The conditional probability of persisting in the seed bank for 1 yr ranged from 14 to 45% and differed significantly among the transects. Significant differences in the probabilities of emerging (or persisting) produced seed banks of varying age structure among the transects and years. A life table analysis of the vegetative plants indicated significant differences between years in their survivorship curves. In addition, seedlings derived from seeds 1 yr old or older germinated significantly later than the general seed population. Age—structured seed banks are expected to alter the population dynamics and demographic projections of plant populations.
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