Conifer seedling recruitment in a southeastern Canadian boreal forest: the importance of substrate

In order to explain conifer species recruitment in Canada's southeastern boreal forest, we characterized conifer regeneration microsites and determined how these microsites vary in abundance during succession. Microsite abundance was evaluated in deciduous, mixed and coniferous stands along a 2...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of vegetation science 1998-08, Vol.9 (4), p.575-582
Main Authors: Simard, M.J, Bergeron, Y, Sirois, L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abies balsamea
Betula papyrifera
Boreal forests
Coniferous forests
Conifers
deciduous forests
ecological succession
equations
Forest ecology
Forest litter
Forest regeneration
Forestry
habitats
Hosie
Litter
mathematical models
Microsite
mixed forests
natural regeneration
Nurse log
Picea glauca
Picea mariana
Populus balsamifera
Populus tremuloides
Québec
Regeneration
Salix
seedling growth
Seedlings
Special Feature: Key Issues in Disturbance Dynamics in Boreal Forests
substrates
Succession
Thuja occidentalis
Trees
Vegetation
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Summary:In order to explain conifer species recruitment in Canada's southeastern boreal forest, we characterized conifer regeneration microsites and determined how these microsites vary in abundance during succession. Microsite abundance was evaluated in deciduous, mixed and coniferous stands along a 234-yr postfire chronosequence. Conifers were most often found in relatively well-illuminated microsites, devoid of litter, especially broad-leaf litter, and with a reduced cover of lower vegetation (< 50 cm tall). Although associated with moss-rich forest floor substrates, Abies balsamea was the most ubiquitously distributed species. Picea glauca and especially Thuja occidentalis seedlings were frequently found on rotten logs. Light measurements did not show differences among seedling species nor between stand types. The percentage cover of broad-leaf litter decreased significantly during succession. Also, rotten logs covered with moss occupied a significantly larger area in the mid-successionnal stands than in early successional deciduous or late successional coniferous stands. The results suggest that the presence of specific forest floor substrate types is a factor explaining low conifer recruitment under deciduous stands, conifer codominance in the mid-successional stage, and delayed Thuja recolonization after fire. Results also suggest that some facilitation mechanism is responsible for the observed directional succession.
ISSN:1100-9233
1654-1103
DOI:10.2307/3237273