Leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula) affects vegetation more than seed banks in mixed-grass prairies of the Northern Great Plains

Invasive Plant Science and Management
By: , and 

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Abstract

Exotic plants have the ability to modify soil seed banks in habitats they invade, but little is known about the legacy of invasion on seed banks once an exotic plant has successfully been controlled. Natural areas previously invaded by leafy spurge in the northern Great Plains typically have one of two fates following its removal: a return of native plants, or a secondary invasion of other exotic plants. It is unknown, however, if this difference in plant communities following leafy spurge control is due to seed bank differences. To answer this question, we monitored seed banks and standing vegetation for 2 yr in mixed-grass prairies that were previously invaded by leafy spurge but controlled within 5 yr of our study. We found that native plant seed banks were largely intact in areas previously invaded by leafy spurge, regardless of the current living plant community, and leafy spurge invasion history had a larger impact on cover and diversity of the vegetation than on the seed banks. Differences in plant communities following leafy spurge control do not appear to be related to the seed banks, and soil conditions may be more important in determining trajectories of these postinvasion communities.

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Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula) affects vegetation more than seed banks in mixed-grass prairies of the Northern Great Plains
Series title Invasive Plant Science and Management
DOI 10.1614/IPSM-D-12-00076.1
Volume 6
Issue 3
Year Published 2013
Language English
Publisher Weed Science Society of America
Contributing office(s) Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center
Description 17 p.
First page 416
Last page 432
Country United States
State North Dakota
Other Geospatial Theodore Roosevelt National Park
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