The impact of soil properties and forest stand age on the soil seed bank

Abstract

The chemical composition and mechanical attributes of soil directly influence the environment in the soil seed bank, and both of these properties change with the age of the forest stand. This study, which addresses the impact of soil properties and stand age on the structure of the soil seed bank, was conducted in the forest district of Valtice in the southern Czech Republic. The soil seed bank was sampled across different ages of forest stands. The soil properties were measured for each sample, and a seed separation method was used. A total of 14,340 seeds from 94 species were found. Three species, Urtica dioica, Circaea lutetiana and Moehringia trinervia, dominated the soil seed bank, accounting for 62 % of the total seeds. Four variables influenced the composition of the soil seed bank: soil porosity, volumetric moisture content, forest stand age and total cover of trees. Seed density and species richness in the soil seed bank decreased with increasing age of the forest stand. The results show that the soil seed bank is much more strongly influenced by forest age and total cover of the tree layer than by the tested soil properties.