Interactions between seedlings of Chrysanthemoides monilifera and Acacia longifolia

Displacement of Acacia longifolia on coastal dunes in New South Wales by the invasive species Chrysanthemoides monilifera may be linked to the greater competitiveness by the latter in the seedling stage, as demonstrated in pot experiments. This occurs despite a lower chlorophyll concentration in shoots of C. monilifera which leads to a lower assimilation rate per unit leaf area and lower carbohydrate concentrations. However, this assimilate is spread over a greater total leaf area. Such a strategy associated with‘quantity’may thus be more important than leaf‘quality’in terms of competitiveness. In A. longifolia, the production of higher quality‘leaves’but of lower total area may be well‐suited in the often sparse native populations found in sand dunes, but appears disadvantageous when seedlings of C. monilifera also co‐exist.The competitive advantage of C. monilifera over A. longifolia is reduced but not reversed under water stress. Under severe stress, mortality of C. monilifera is greater than that of A. longifolia in monocultures but mortality of both species is similar in mixtures. The reason appears to be that C. monilifera transpires more water per plant even though its rate of transpiration per unit leaf area is reduced under water stress because of early stomatal closure. In mixtures, faster root growth of C. monilifera ensures faster uptake of the available soil water, thus minimizing the inherent advantage in A. longifolia of its lower water use and greater efficiency.