Variation of seedling recruitment in wet meadow species over six years: positive effects of mowing and negative effects of fertilization
Data files
May 08, 2025 version files 322.30 KB
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Adults_data.csv
134.87 KB
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README.md
3.19 KB
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Seedlings_data.csv
184.24 KB
Abstract
Germination and seedling recruitment are stages of the plant life cycle that are highly sensitive to biotic and abiotic filtering. Simultaneously, seedling regeneration is considered crucial for biodiversity maintenance in grasslands and is strongly affected by grassland management. The response of seedling regeneration to management and its interannual variability remains understudied. We studied the effects of mowing, fertilization, dominant removal, and their combinations on the seedling composition in a species-rich wet meadow community in Central Europe. We also measured litter and moss cover and analyzed their effect on seedlings. Firstly, we analyzed the total seedling numbers and species composition across six consecutive years. Secondly, we tested the spatial relationship between conspecific seedling–adult pairs and their strength, by comparing it against that of heterospecific seedling–adult pairs, and explained the observed pattern with species traits, namely the dispersal mode. Total seedling numbers were significantly decreased by fertilization, and significantly increased by mowing. Increased litter cover was an important mechanism causing the extremely low numbers of seedlings in fertilized plots. The association between conspecific seedling–adult pairs was always significantly positive and higher than for heterospecifics. The tightness of the relationship was determined by the individual species’ dispersal mode. We found that a key process of the plant species' life cycle, seedling regeneration, was overwhelmingly negatively affected by fertilization in experimental plots. Mowing is efficient in preserving species’ successful regeneration, but only in unfertilized plots. Large differences in both total seedling numbers and species proportions between individual years suggested that different species probably establish themselves in different years, which is a co-existence maintaining mechanism suggested by Grubb’s regeneration niche theory. Such high spatio-temporal variability in seedling recruitment forms the basis for niche partitioning and storage effects as mechanisms of biodiversity maintenance in wet meadow communities.
Dataset DOI: 10.5061/dryad.f7m0cfz7g
Description of the data and file structure
Our experiment consisted of 24 permanent plots, each 2 m × 2 m. Three treatments, mowing (M), fertilization (F), and dominant species Molinia caerulea removal (R), were applied within a central 1m x 1m plot in a factorial design, with three replicates for each treatment combination (eight treatment combinations x three replicates yielding 24 plots). Seedling composition was monitored in 25 subplots, 10 cm x 10 cm, located within each plot for six years, from 2001 to 2006. The data consists of the 15 most abundant species at the seedling stage and the total number of seedlings (including unidentified species) present in subplots. Also, we used the cover of adult plants to calculate seedlings-adult associations, and we present the data on the cover of adult plants in subplots from 2001 to 2005.
Files and variables
File: Seedlings_data.csv
Description: Number of seedlings of the 15 most abundant species at the seedling stage, cover of mosses, and litter cover in subplots 10 cm x 10 cm, located within plots with the given treatment combination.
Variables
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Plot ID // Identification of plot (numbered 1 – 24)
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Subplot ID // Identification of subplot (numbered 1 – 25)
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Year // Year of data collection (2001– 2006)
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Treatment code // Treatment combination is coded as follows:
F = Fertilized plot
M = Mown plot
R = Plot with removal of Molinia caerulea
FM = Fertilized and mown plot
FR = Fertilized and removal plot
MR = Mown and removal plot
FMR = Fertilized, mown, and removal plot
C = Control plot, no treatment applied
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E0 cover // Cover (in %) of mosses in a subplot
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Litter cover // Cover (in %) of litter in a subplot
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Species names // Numbers of seedlings of the species stated in the variable name in a subplot
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number of all seedlings present // Numbers of all seedlings present in a subplot (includes both identified and unidentified species)
File: Adults_data.csv
Description: Cover of adult plants (of the same species which we monitored at the seedling stage) in subplots 10 cm x 10 cm, located within plots with the given treatment combination.
Variables
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Plot ID // Identification of plot (numbered 1 – 24)
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Subplot ID // Identification of subplot (numbered 1 – 25)
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Year // Year of data collection (2001– 2005)
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Treatment code // Treatment combination is coded as follows:
F = Fertilized plot
M = Mown plot
R = Plot with removal of Molinia caerulea
FM = Fertilized and mown plot
FR = Fertilized and removal plot
MR = Mown and removal plot
FMR = Fertilized, mown, and removal plot
C = control plot, no treatment applied
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Species names // cover (in %) of the species stated in the variable name in a subplot
Code/software
Microsoft Excel for opening csv. files