info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Gregarious bamboo flowering opens a window of opportunity for regeneration in a temperate forest of Patagonia
Fecha
2009-03Registro en:
Giordano, Carla Valeria; Sanchez, Rodolfo Augusto; Austin, Amy Theresa; Gregarious bamboo flowering opens a window of opportunity for regeneration in a temperate forest of Patagonia; Wiley Blackwell Publishing, Inc; New Phytologist; 181; 4; 3-2009; 880-889
0028-646X
CONICET Digital
CONICET
Autor
Giordano, Carla Valeria
Sanchez, Rodolfo Augusto
Austin, Amy Theresa
Resumen
• Rare gregarious flowering of understorey bamboo species occurs in temperate and subtropical forests around the world, but the ecological consequences of this phenomenon for forest regeneration are not well understood. • Field experiments were conducted in an old-growth temperate forest in Patagonia, Argentina after a massive bamboo flowering event, to examine whether light quality and other changes in microhabitats could affect seed germination and growth of overstorey species. • Germination of southern beech (Nothofagus obliqua) was positively correlated with red:far red (R:FR) ratios in a range of microhabitats generated by the death of the understorey bamboo (Chusquea culeou). Experimental modification of understorey R:FR ratios to mimic alternative light environments reversed this germination response in plots with senescent understorey, but not in plots with live bamboo. Laboratory incubations demonstrated a significant interaction between R:FR ratios and thermal amplitude in promoting seed germination. Microhabitats also significantly affected the growth of emerged seedlings. • Microenvironmental changes generated by this flowering event appear to have opened a window of opportunity for germination and growth of overstorey species. We demonstrate that natural gradients in light quality associated with this ecological phenomenon are a major component affecting forest regeneration in this ecosystem.