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Tree litter and the lower limits of subalpine herbs and grasses in the Brindabella Range, ACT
Author(s) -
WILSON S. D.,
Zammit C. A.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
australian journal of ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1442-9993
pISSN - 0307-692X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1442-9993.1992.tb00814.x
Subject(s) - litter , understory , plant litter , biology , eucalyptus , subalpine forest , herbaceous plant , woodland , montane ecology , biomass (ecology) , ecology , seedling , range (aeronautics) , botany , agronomy , canopy , nutrient , materials science , composite material
Herbs and grasses form a dense understorey in subalpine woodlands dominated by Eucalyptus pauciflora but are absent from stands of Eucalyptus dives immediately down slope. We hypothesized that a relatively high rate of litter accumulation beneath E. dives was responsible for the downward limit of subalpine plants. We tested this hypothesis by removing litter and by adding E. dives litter to plots in both forest types during two growing seasons. Litter accumulation rates were 50% higher under E. dives than E. pauciflora , but understorey bio‐mass in control plots was eight times higher under E. pauciflora than E. dives . After the first growing season, seedling densities in both forest types were significantly higher in plots from which litter had been removed but, after the second growing season, understorey biomass was not higher in litter removal plots. The results indicate that litter has the potential to limit germination in both forest types, but that environmental filters other than litter subsequently limit recruitment and are ultimately responsible for the lower distributional limits of subalpine herbaceous species.