Soil compaction and water availability affect growth and survival of Quercus ilex subsp. ballota seedlings under different light environments

Author

• Juan Manuel Mancilla-Leytón 
• , María José Leiva
• , Ángel Martín Vicente

Abstract

We examined the effect of abiotic characteristics (soil compaction, water availability and photosynthetic photon flux density (PPF) on the germination, emergence, growth and survival of Quercus ilex subsp. ballota seedlings. To determine the importance of these characteristics on the growth and development of the seedlings, we simulated two levels of water availability [650 mm year−1 (W650) and 1000 mm year−1 (W1000)], two levels of light [representing full (PPF100) and low sunlight (80 % reduction of sunlight, PPF20) conditions] and three soil compaction depths [soil compaction at depth 60 cm (C60), 25 cm (C25) and 10 cm (C10)]. Seedling emergence and survival were determined, along with various biometric characteristics. Emergence rate was only significantly affected by the water availability treatment, being significantly lower in W650. No differences were found in the other treatments. Seedlings grown under high PPF presented an increase in biomass. Seedlings grown in the deeper soils (C60) showed deeper and thinner roots. The results show increased survival of seedlings grown under low PPF and high water availability. Our results obtained in this greenhouse study support the hypothesis of facilitation, which considers that under drought conditions the promoting effect of water balance induced by the shade is more positive for the survival of the seedlings. We cannot say whether there are one or more independent factors that will limit or enhance the natural regeneration of Q. ilex, which implies that the effects of some can be mitigated, compensated for or amplified depending on the interaction with other elements. Knowledge of these interactions and the environmental variability of habitats at a smaller scale can be a powerful tool for promoting the growth of native vegetation and conservation of the Mediterranean area and dry environments.

References

1. Aguiar MR, Sala OE (1999) Patch structure, dynamics and implications for the functioning of arid ecosystems. Trends Ecol Evol 14:273–277CrossRefPubMed
2. Andrade A, Wolfe DW, Fereres E (1993) Leaf expansion, photosynthesis, and water relations of sunflower plants grown on compacted soil. Plant Soil 149:175–184CrossRef
3. Aranda I, Castro L, Pardos M, Gil L, Pardos JA (2005) Effects of the interaction between drought and shade on water relations, gas exchange and morphological traits in cork oak (Quercus suber L.) seedlings. For Ecol Manage 210:117–129CrossRef
4. Arvidsson J (1999) Nutrient uptake and growth of barley as affected by soil compaction. Plant Soil 208:9–19CrossRef
5. Badano EI, Pérez D, Vergada CH (2009) Love of nurse plants is not enough for restoring Oak forests in a seasonally Dry tropical environment. Restor Ecol 17:571–576CrossRef
6. Begni G, Darras S, Hoepffner M, Pesin E, Tourre Y (2001) The present status of knowledge on global climatic change; its regional aspects and impacts in the Mediterranean Region: a “blue plan” scientific and strategic report. MEDIAS/GB/db/2001. http://​www.​planbleu.​org. Accessed on Nov 2010
7. Bengough AG, McKenzie BM, Hallett PD, Valentine TA (2011) Root elongation, water stress, and mechanical impedance: a review of limiting stresses and beneficial root tip traits. J Exp Bot 62:59–68CrossRefPubMed
8. Bertness MD, Callaway R (1994) Positive interactions in communities. Trends Ecol Evol 9:191–193
9. Bonal R, Muñoz A (2007) Multi-trophic effects of ungulate intraguild predation on acorn weevils. Oecologia 152:533–554CrossRefPubMed
10. Callaway RM (1995) Positive interactions among plants. Bot Rev 61:306–349CrossRef
11. Callaway RM, Walker LR, Abrams PA (1997) Competition and facilitation: a synthetic approach to interactions in plant communities. Ecology 78:1958–1965CrossRef
12. Canadell J, Zedler P (1995) Undergrowth structure of woody plants in Mediterranean ecosystems of Australia, California and Chile. In: Fox M, Kalin M, Zedler P (eds) Ecology and biogeography of Mediterranean ecosystems in Chile, California and Australia. Springer, Berlin, pp 177–210CrossRef
13. Canham CD, Berkowitz AR, Kelly VR, Lovett GM, Ollinger SV, Schnurr J (1996) Biomass allocation and multiple resource limitation in tree seedlings. Can J For Res 26:1521–1530CrossRef
14. Castro J, Zamora R, Hódar JA, Gómez JM (2002) Use of shrubs as nurse plants: a new technique for reforestation in Mediterranean mountains. Restor Ecol 10:297–305CrossRef
15. Castro J, Zamora R, Hódar JA, Gómez JM, Gómez-Aparicio L (2004) Benefits of using shrubs as nurse plants for reforestation in Mediterranean mountains: a 4-year study. Restor Ecol 12:352–358CrossRef
16. Castro J, Zamora R, Hódar JA (2006) Restoring Quercus pyrenaica forests using pioneer shrubs as nurse plants. Appl Veg Sci 9:137–142
17. Chapin FS, Bloom AJ, Field CB, Waring RH (1987) Plant responses to multiple environmental factors. Bioscience 37:49–57CrossRef
18. Chapin FS, Schulze ED, Mooney HA (1990) The ecology and economics of storage in plants. Annu rev ecol syst 21:423–447
19. Cotrufo MF, Alberti G, Inglima I, Marjanovic H, LeCain D, Zaldei A, Peressotti A, Miglietta F (2011) Decreased summer drought affects plant productivity and soil carbon dynamics in a Mediterranean woodland. Biogeosciences 8:2729–2739CrossRef
20. David TS, Henriques K-B, Nunes VF, Vaz M, Pereira JS, Siegwole R, Chaves MM, Gazarini LC, David JS (2007) Water-use strategies in two co-occuring Mediterranean evergreen oaks: surviving the summer drought. Tree Physiol 27:793–803CrossRefPubMed
21. Di Castri F, Goodall DW, Specht RL (1981) Mediterranean-type shrublands. Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam
22. Dytham C (2011) Choosing and using statistics: a biologist’s guide. Wiley, Hoboken
23. Eissenstat DM (1992) Costs and benefits of constructing roots of small diameter. J Plant Nutr 15:763–782CrossRef
24. Garcia-Estringana P, Alonso-Blázquez N, Marques MJ, Bienes R, Alegre J (2010) Direct and indirect effects of Mediterranean vegetation on runoff and soil loss. Eur J Soil Sci 61:174–185CrossRef
25. Goberna M, Pascual JA, García C, Sánchez J (2007) Do plant clumps constitute microbial hotspots in semiarid Mediterranean patchy landscapes? Soil Biol Biochem 39:1047–1054CrossRef
26. Gomez-Aparicio L, Valladares F, Zamora R, Quero JL (2005) Response of tree seedlings to the abiotic heterogeneity generated by nurse shrubs: an experimental approach at different scales. Ecography 28:757–768CrossRef
27. Gómez-Aparicio L, Zamora R, Gómez JM, Hódar JA, Castro J, Baraza E (2004) Applying plant facilitation to forest restoration: a meta-analysis of the use of shrubs as nurse plants. Ecol Appl 14:1128–1138CrossRef
28. González FDL, Zelaya FP, Sánchez RS (1998) Localización de capas compactadas en el perfil del suelo mediante penetrometría. Terra Latinoam 16:303–307
29. Halverson HG, Zisa RP (1982) Measuring the response of conifer seedlings to soil compaction stress. Forest Service Research Paper NE-509
30. Hernández-Santana V, David TS, Martínez-Fernández J (2008) Environmental and plant-based controls of water use in a Mediterranean oak stand. For Ecol Manag 255:3707–3715CrossRef
31. Herrera CM, Jordano P, López-Soria L, Amat JA (1994) Recruitment of a mast-fruiting, bird-dispersed tree: bridging frugivore activity and seedling establishment. Ecol Monogr 64:315–344CrossRef
32. Hoffmann C, Jungk A (1995) Growth and phosphorus supply of sugar beet as affected by soil compaction and water tension. Plant Soil 176:15–25CrossRef
33. Holmgren M (2000) Combined effects of shade and drought on tulip poplar seedlings: trade-off in tolerance or facilitation? Oikos 90:67–78CrossRef
34. IMA 2006. Medio Ambiente en Andalucía. Informe. Junta de Andalucía, Sevilla
35. Holmgren M, Scheffer M, Huston MA (1997) The interplay of facilitation and competition in plant communities. Ecology 78:1966–1975CrossRef
36. Joffre R (1987) Contraintes du milieu et réponses de la végetation herbacée dans les dehesas de la Sierra Norte (Andalousie, Espahne). Thèse de doctorat Université des Sciences et Techniques du Languedoc, Montpellier
37. Joffre R, Rambal S, Ratte J (1999) The dehesa system of southern Spain and Portugal as a natural ecosystem mimic. Agrofor Syst 45:57–79CrossRef
38. Jordano P, Godoy JA (2002) The dynamics of frugivore-generated seed shadows: demographic and genetic effects. In: Levey DJ, Silva W, Galetti M (eds) Seed dispersal and frugivory: ecological, evolutionary, and conservation issues. CABI Publishing, Wallingford, pp 305–321
39. Jordano P, Herrera CM (1995) Shuffling the offspring: uncoupling and spatial discordance of multiple stages in vertebrate seed dispersal. Ecoscience 2:230–237
40. Leiva MJ, Fernández-Alés R (1998) Variability in seedling water status during drought within a Quercus ilex subsp ballota population, and its relation to seedling morphology. For Ecol Manage 111:147–156CrossRef
41. Leiva MJ, Fernández-Alés R (2003) Post-dispersive losses of acorns from Mediterranean savannah-like forests and shrublands. For Ecol Manage 176:265–271CrossRef
42. Leiva MJ, Vera M (2015) Effect of artificial shelters of dead branches on acorn survival and dispersal in shrub-lacking Mediterranean dehesas. New Forest 46:965–978CrossRef
43. Leiva MJ, Mancilla-Leyton JM, Martín-Vicente Á (2013) Methods to improve the recruitment of holm-oak seedlings in grazed Mediterranean savanna-like ecosystems (dehesas). Ann For Sci 70:11–20CrossRef
44. Limousin JM, Rambal S, Ourcival JM, Rocheteau A, Joffre R, Rodríguez-Cortina R (2009) Long-term transpiration change with rainfall decline in a Mediterranean Quercus ilex forest. Glob Change Biol 15:2163–2175CrossRef
45. Lloret F, Pausas JG, Vilà M (2003) Responses of Mediterranean plant species to different fire frequencies in Garraf Natural Park (Catalonia, Spain): field observations and modelling predictions. Plant Ecol 167:223–235CrossRef
46. Maestre FT, Cortina J, Bautista S, Bellot J, Vallejo R (2003) Small-scale environmental heterogeneity and spatio-temporal dynamics of seedling establishment in a semiarid degraded ecosystem. Ecosystems 6:630–643CrossRef
47. Mancilla-Leytón JM, Cambrollé J, Figueroa ME, Martín Vicente ÁM (2013) Growth and survival of cork oak (Quercus suber) seedlings after simulated partial cotyledon consumption under different soil nutrient contents. Plant Soil 370:381–392CrossRef
48. Marshall SJ, Clarke GK, Dyke AS, Fisher DA (1996) Geologic and topographic controls on fast flow in the Laurentide and Cordilleran Ice Sheets (1978–2012). J Geophys Res Solid Earth 101:17827–17839CrossRef
49. Martín Vicente Á, Fernández Alés R (2006) Long term persistence of dehesas. Evidences from history. Agrofor Syst 67:19–28
50. Misra R, Gibbons A (1996) Growth and morphology of eucalypt seedling-roots, in relation to soil strength arising from compaction. Plant Soil 182:1–11CrossRef
51. Moreno G, Puliod F (2009) The functioning, management, and persistence of Dehesas. In: Rigueiro-Rodriguez A, McAdam J, Mosquera-Losada MR (eds) Agroforestry in Europe: advances in agroforestry series, 6. Springer, Berlin, pp 127–160
52. Oliet J, Jacobs DF (2007) Microclimatic conditions and plant morph-physiological development within a tree shelter environment during establishment of Quercus ilex seedlings. Agric For Meteorol 144:58–72CrossRef
53. Otieno DO, Kurz-Besson C, Liu J, Schmidt MWT, do Vale-Lobo R, David TS, Siegwoll R, Pereira JS, Tenhunen JD (2006) Seasonal variations in soil and plant water status in a Quercus suber L. stand: roots as determinants of tree productivity and survival in the Mediterranean-type ecosystem. Plant Soil 283:119–135CrossRef
54. Ozturk M, Dogan Y, Sakcali S, Doulis A, Karam F (2010) Ecophysiological responses of some maquis (Ceratonia siliqua L., Olea oleaster Hoffm. and Link, Pistacia lentiscus and Quercus coccifera L.) plant species to drought in the east Mediterranean ecosystem. J Environ Biol 31:233–345PubMed
55. Padilla FM, Pugnaire FI (2006) The role of nurse plants in the restoration of degraded environments. Front Ecol Environ 4:196–202CrossRef
56. Padilla FM, Pugnaire FI (2007) Rooting depth and soil moisture control Mediterranean woody seedling survival during drought. Funct Ecol 21:489–495CrossRef
57. Passioura J (2002) Soil conditions and plant growth. Plant, Cell Environ 25:311–318CrossRef
58. Pausas JG, Bladé C, Valdecantos A, Seva JP, Fuentes D, Alloza JA, Vilagrosa A, Bautista S, Cortina J, Vallejo R (2004) Pines and oaks in the restoration of Mediterranean landscapes of Spain: new perspectives for an old practice—a review. Plant Ecol 171:209–220CrossRef
59. Pérez-Ramos IM, Marañón T (2008) Factors affecting post-dispersal seed predation in two coexisting oak species: microhabitat, burial and exclusion of large herbivores. For Ecol Manage 255:3506–3514CrossRef
60. Puértolas J, Oliet JA, Jacobs DF, Benito LF, Peñuelas JL (2010) Is light the key factor for success of tube shelters in forest restoration plantings under Mediterranean climates? For Ecol Manage 260:610–617CrossRef
61. Pugnaire FI, Haase P, Puigdefábregas P, Cueto M, Clark SC, Incoll LD (1996) Facilitation and succession under the canopy of a leguminous shrub, Retama sphaerocarpa, in a semi-arid environment in south-east Spain. Oikos 76:455–464CrossRef
62. Pulido FJ, Díaz M, de Trucios SJH (2001) Size structure and regeneration of Spanish holm oak Quercus ilex forests and dehesas: effects of agroforestry use on their long-term sustainability. For Ecol Manage 146:1–13CrossRef
63. Quero JL, Villar R, Marañón T, Zamora R (2006) Interactions of drought and shade effects on seedlings of four Quercus species: physiological and structural leaf responses. New Phytol 170:819–834CrossRefPubMed
64. Rey PJ, Siles G, Alcántara JM (2009) Community-level restoration profiles in Mediterranean vegetation: nurse-based vs. traditional reforestation. J Appl Ecol 46:937–945CrossRef
65. Rodríguez-Calcerrada J, Cano FJ, Valbuena-Carabaña M, Gil L, Aranda I (2010) Functional performance of oak seedlings naturally regenerated across microhabitats of distinct overstorey canopy closure. New Forest 39:245–259CrossRef
66. Ruiz-Sinoga JD, Gabarón Galeote MA, Martínez Murillo JF, Garcia Marín R (2011) Vegetation strategies for soil consumption along a pluviometric gradient in southern Spain. Catena 84:12–20CrossRef
67. Sánchez-Andrés R, Sánchez-Carrillo S, Benítez M, Sánchez-López A (2006) Tillage induced differential morphometric responses and growth patterns in afforestation with Quercus ilex. Soil Till Res 90:50–62
68. Sánchez-Gómez D, Valladares F, Zavala MA (2006) Performance of seedlings of Mediterranean woody species under experimental gradients of irradiance and water availability: trade-offs and evidence for niche differentiation. New Phytol 170:795–806CrossRefPubMed
69. Sánchez-Humanes B, Espelta JM (2011) Increased drought reduces acorn production in Quercus ilex coppices: thinning mitigates this effect but only in the short term. Forestry 84:73–82CrossRef
70. Sardans J, Peñuelas J (2013) Plant-soil interactions in Mediterranean forest and shrublands: impacts of climatic change. Plant Soil 365:1–33
71. Schupp EW, Milleron T, Russo SE (2002) Dissemination limitation and the origin and maintenance of species-rich tropical forest. In: Levey DJ, Silva W, Galetti M (eds) Seed dispersal and frugivory: ecological, evolutionary, and conservation issues. CABI Publishing, Wallingford, pp 19–33
72. Smith KD, May PB, Moore GM (2001) The influence of compaction and soil strength on the establishment of four Australian landscape trees. J Arboricult 27:1–7
73. Sokal RR, Rohlf FJ (1995) Biometry: the principles and practice of statistics in biological research. Freeman, New York
74. Soto DP, Donoso PJ, Puettmann KJ (2014) Mortality in relation to growth rates and soil resistance varies by species for underplanted Nothofagus seedlings in scarified shelterwoods. New Forest 45:655–669CrossRef
75. Valladares F, Pearcy R (2002) Drought can be more critical in the shade than in the sun: a field study of carbon gain and photo-inhibition in a Californian shrub during a dry El Niño year. Plant, Cell Environ 25:749–759CrossRef
76. Villar-Salvador P, Puértolas J, Cuesta B, Peñuelas JL, Uscola M, Heredia N, Rey-Benayas JM (2012) Increase in size and nitrogen concentration enhances seedling survival in Mediterranean plantations. Insights from an ecophysiological conceptual model of plant survival. New Forest 43:755–770CrossRef
77. Watson GW, Kelsey P (2006) The impact of soil compaction on soil aeration and fine root density of Quercus palustris. Urban Urban Green 4:69–74CrossRef
78. West AG, Dawson TE, February EC, Midgley GF, Bond WJ, Aston TL (2012) Diverse functional responses to drought in a Mediterranean-type shrublands in South Africa. New Phytol 195:396–407CrossRefPubMed
79. Whitford WG (2002) Ecology of desert systems. Academic Press, Cambridge
80. Zavala MA, Espelta JM, Retana J (2000) Constraints and trade-offs in Mediterranean plant communities: the case of holm-oak Aleppo pine forests. Bot Rev 66:120–140CrossRef
81. Zisa RP, Halverson HG, Stout BB (1980) Establishment and early growth of conifers on compact soils in urban areas. USDA Forest Service Research Paper (NE451)

For further details log on website :
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11056-016-9534-8