Abstract
Although aboveground metrics remain the standard, restoring functional ecosystems should promote both aboveground and belowground biotic communities. Restoration using salvaged soil—removal and translocation of topsoil from areas planned for development, with subsequent deposition at degraded sites—is an alternative to traditional methods. Salvaged soil contains both seed and spore banks, which may holistically augment restoration. Salvaged soil methods may reduce non-native germination by burying non-native seeds, increase native diversity by adding native seeds, or transfer soil microbiomes, including arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), to recipient sites. We transferred soil to three degraded recipient sites and monitored soil microbes, using flow cytometry and molecular analyses, and characterized the plant community composition. Our findings suggest that salvaged soil at depths ≥5 cm reduced non-native grass cover and increased native plant density and species richness. Bacterial abundance at recipient sites were statistically equivalent to donor sites in abundance. Overall, topsoil additions affected AMF alpha diversity and community composition and increased rhizophilic AMF richness. Because salvaged soil restoration combines multiple soil components, including native plant and microbial propagules, it may promote both aboveground and belowground qualities of the donor site, when applying this method for restoring invaded and degraded ecosystems.
Highlights
Ecological restoration aims to repair damage caused to degraded ecosystems, which typically are threatened by reduced biological diversity [1]
Degraded sites once occupied by these coastal sage scrub plants are typically dominated by non-native invasive annual species, such as grasses from Bromus or Avena genera, as well as mustards such as Brassica nigra and Hirschfeldia incana
Since the top 15 cm of soil was initially collected from the donor site, we can assume that the majority of seeds from the donor site were transferred to the recipient site (Figure 3)
Summary
Ecological restoration aims to repair damage caused to degraded ecosystems, which typically are threatened by reduced biological diversity [1]. The Society for Ecological Restoration defines a recovered ecosystem as one in which “sufficient biotic and abiotic resources (are present) to continue its development without further assistance” [2]. The restoration of a functioning ecosystem, thereby, should contribute to restoring both aboveground and belowground community structure. Both methodology and metrics of restoration success rarely reflect such a holistic approach [3]. One challenge is to move beyond aboveground metrics, to investigate aboveground and belowground interactions as an important factor in restoration projects
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