Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-15T19:22:57.593Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Defining transient and persistent seed banks in species with pronounced seasonal dormancy and germination patterns

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2007

Jeffrey L. Walck ,
Jerry M. Baskin ,
Carol C. Baskin  and
Siti N. Hidayati
Jeffrey L. Walck*
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, PO Box 60, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37132, USA
Jerry M. Baskin
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0225, USA
Carol C. Baskin
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0225, USA Department of Plant and Soil Science, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0321, USA
Siti N. Hidayati
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, PO Box 60, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37132, USA
*
*Correspondence Fax: +1 615 849 5093, Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The most often used time-line for distinguishing a transient seed bank from a persistent seed bank is one calendar year. Thus, species whose seeds live in or on the soil for <1 year have a transient seed bank, whereas those whose seeds live for ≥1 year have a persistent seed bank. However, dormancy cycling of seeds buried in soil has not been given due consideration in these models. When dormancy cycling is considered, it is shown that seeds of both autumn-germinators and spring-germinators are in the dormant state when they are 1 year old. Thus, unless the seeds live until at least the second germination season (i.e. usually 16–18 months following dispersal), they are, in effect, part of a transient seed bank, having lived through only one germination season. We propose that for seeds of such species to be considered part of a short-term persistent seed bank, they should remain viable and germinable until at least the second germination season, and to be part of a long-term persistent seed bank, until at least the sixth germination season. Our definitions are applicable to seeds with physiological, physical or morphophysiological dormancy, which often require >1 year after maturity to come out of dormancy in nature. We discuss modifications of the seedling emergence method for detection of a soil seed bank, so that they correspond to our definitions of seed-bank strategies.

Keywords

autumn-germinatorsdormancy cyclingpersistencespring-germinatorstransient seed bank
Type
Research Opinion
Information
Seed Science Research , Volume 15 , Issue 3 , September 2005 , pp. 189 - 196
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bakker, J.P. (1989) Nature management by grazing and cutting. Dordrecht, Kluwer, Academic Publishers.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bakker, J.P., Bos, A.F., Hoogveld, J. and Muller, H.J. (1991) The role of the seed bank in restoration management of semi-natural grasslands. pp. 449–455in Ravera, O. (Ed.) Terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems: perturbation and recovery. New York, Ellis Horwood.Google Scholar
Bakker, J.P., Poschlod, P., Strykstra, R.J., Bekker, R.M. and Thompson, K. (1996) Seed banks and seed dispersal: important topics in restoration ecology. Acta Botanica Neerlandica 45, 461–490CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barton, L.V. (1944) Some seeds showing special dormancy. Contributions from Boyce Thompson Institute 13, 259–271Google Scholar
Barton, L.V. and Schroeder, E.M. (1942) Dormancy in seeds of Convallaria majalis L. and Smilacina racemosa (L.) Desf. Contributions from Boyce Thompson Institute 12, 277–300Google Scholar
Baskin, C.C. (2003) Breaking physical dormancy in seeds - focusing on the lens. New Phytologist 158, 229–232 (commentary on paper by Van, Assche et al. , 2003)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, C.C. and Baskin, J.M. (1998) Seeds: Ecology, biogeography, and evolution of dormancy and germination. San Diego, Academic Press.Google Scholar
Baskin, C.C. and Baskin, J.M. (2000) Seed germination ecology of Lesquerella lyrata Rollins (Brassicaceae), a federally threatened winter annual. Natural Areas Journal 20, 159–165Google Scholar
Baskin, C.C., Baskin, J.M. and Chester, E.W. (1993) Seed germination ecology of two mesic woodland winter annuals, Nemophila aphylla and Phacelia ranunculacea (Hydrophyllaceae). Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 120, 29–37CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, C.C., Baskin, J.M. and Chester, E.W. (2003) Ecological life cycle of Trepocarpus aethusae (Nutt.) ex DC. and comparisons with two other winter annual Apiaceae native to Eastern United States. Castanea 68, 43–55Google Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1972) Ecological life cycle and physiological ecology of seed germination of Arabidopsis thaliana. Canadian Journal of Botany 50, 353–360CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1975) Seed dormancy in Isanthus brachiatus (Labiatae). American Journal of Botany 62, 623–627CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1978) Seasonal changes in the germination response of Cyperus inflexus seeds to temperature and their ecological significance. Botanical Gazette 139, 231–235CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1980) Ecophysiology of secondary dormancy in seeds of Ambrosia artemisiifolia. Ecology 61, 475–480CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1981) Seasonal changes in the germination responses of buried Lamium amplexicaule seeds. Weed Research 21, 299–306CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1983) Seasonal changes in the germination responses of buried seeds of Arabidopsis thaliana and ecological interpretation. Botanical Gazette 144, 540–543CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1985) The annual dormancy cycle in buried weed seeds: a continuum. BioScience 35, 492–498CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1989a) Physiology of dormancy and germination in relation to seed bank ecology. pp. 53–66in Leck, M.A.;, Parker, V.T.;, Simpson, R.L. (Eds) Ecology of soil seed banks. San Diego, Academic Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1989b) Role of temperature in regulating timing of germination in soil seed reserves of Thlaspi arvense L. Weed Research 29, 317–326CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1990a) The role of light and alternating temperatures on germination of Polygonum aviculare seeds exhumed on various dates. Weed Research 30, 397–402CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1990b) Seed germination biology of the narrowly endemic species Lesquerella stonensis (Brassicaceae). Plant Species Biology 5, 205–213CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (2003) New approaches to the study of the evolution of physical and physiological dormancy, the two most common classes of seed dormancy on earth. pp. 371–380in Nicolás, G.;, Bradford, K.J.;, Côme, D.;, Pritchard, H.W. (Eds) The biology of seeds: Recent research advances. Wallingford, CABI Publishing.Google Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (2004) A classification system for seed dormancy. Seed Science Research 14, 1–16CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, J.M., Nan, X. and Baskin, C.C. (1998) A comparative study of seed dormancy and germination in an annual and a perennial species of Senna (Fabaceae). Seed Science Research 8, 501–512CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bekker, R.M., Bakker, J.P., Grandin, U., Kalamees, R., Milberg, P., Poschlod, P., Thompson, K. and Willems, J.H. (1998) Seed size, shape and vertical distribution in the soil: indicators of seed longevity. Functional Ecology 12, 834–842CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Courtney, A.D. (1968) Seed dormancy and field emergence in Polygonum aviculare. Journal of Applied Ecology 5, 675–684CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Csontos, P. and Tamás, J. (2003) Comparisons of soil seed bank classification systems. Seed Science Research 13, 101–111CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Giersbach, J. (1937) Germination and seedling production of species of Viburnum. Contributions from Boyce Thompson Institute 9, 79–90Google Scholar
Grime, J.P. (1981) The role of seed dormancy in vegetation dynamics. Annals of Applied Biology 98, 555–558CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grime, J.P. (2001) Plant strategies, vegetative processes, and ecosystem properties (2nd edition) Chichester, John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Hidayati, S.N., Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (2001) Dormancy-breaking and germination requirements for seeds of Symphoricarpos orbiculatus (Caprifoliaceae). American Journal of Botany 88, 1444–1451CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
León, J.A. (1985) Germination strategies. pp. 129–142in Greenwood, P.J.;Harvey, P.H.;Slatkin, M. (Eds) Evolution: Essays in honour of John Maynard Smith. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
McDonald, A.W., Bakker, J.P. and Vegelin, K. (1996) Seed bank classification and its importance for the restoration of species-rich flood-meadows. Journal of Vegetation Science 7, 157–164CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Poschlod, P. (1993) Die Dauerhaftigkeit von generativen Diasporenbanken in Böden am Beispiel von Kalkmagerasenpflanzen und deren Bedeutung für den botanischen Arten- und Biotopschutz. Verhandlungen der Gesellschaft für Ökologie 22, 229–240Google Scholar
Poschlod, P. and Jackel, A.-K. (1993) The dynamics of the generative diaspore bank of calcareous grassland plants. I. Seasonal dynamics of diaspore rain and diaspore bank in two calcareous grassland sites of the Suebian Alb. Flora 188, 49–71CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roberts, H.A. (1981) Seed banks in soils. Advances in Applied Biology 6, 1–55Google Scholar
Silvertown, J. (1988) The demographic and evolutionary consequences of seed dormancy. pp. 205–219in Davy, A.J.;Hutchings, M.J.;Watkinson, A.R. (Eds) Plant population ecology. Oxford, Blackwell Scientific Publications.Google Scholar
Stoller, E.W. and Wax, L.M. (1973) Periodicity of germination and emergence of some annual weeds. Weed Science 21, 574–580CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, K. (1992) The functional ecology of seed banks. pp. 231–258in Fenner, M. (Ed.) The ecology of regeneration in plant communities 1st edition. Wallingford, CAB International.Google Scholar
Thompson, K. (1993) Persistence in soil. pp. 199–202in Hendry, G.A.F.;Grime, J.P. (Eds) Methods in comparative plant ecology: A laboratory manual. London, Chapman & Hall.Google Scholar
Thompson, K. and Grime, J.P. (1979) Seasonal variation in the seed banks of herbaceous species in ten contrasting habitats. Journal of Ecology 67, 893–921CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, K., Bakker, J.P. and Bekker, R.M. (1997) The soil seed banks of North West Europe: Methodology, density and longevity. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Thompson, K., Ceriani, R.M., Bakker, J.P. and Bekker, R.M. (2003) Are seed dormancy and persistence in soil related?. Seed Science Research 13, 97–100CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Assche, J.A., Debucquoy, K.L.A. and Rommens, W.A.F. (2003) Seasonal cycles in the germination capacity of buried seeds of some Leguminosae (Fabaceae). New Phytologist 158, 315–323CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Venable, D.L. (1989) Modeling the evolutionary ecology of seed banks. pp. 67–87in Leck, M.A.;Parker, V.T.;Simpson, R.L.;Ecology of soil seed banks. San Diego, Academic Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walck, J.L., Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1997a) A comparative study of the seed germination biology of a narrow endemic and two geographically-widespread species of Solidago (Asteraceae). 1. Germination phenology and effect of cold stratification on germination. Seed Science Research 7, 47–58CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walck, J.L., Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1997b) A comparative study of the seed germination biology of a narrow endemic and two geographically-widespread species of Solidago (Asteraceae). 2. Germination responses of buried seeds in relation to seasonal temperature cycles. Seed Science Research 7, 209–220CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walck, J.L., Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1998) A comparative study of the seed germination biology of a narrow endemic and two geographically-widespread species of Solidago (Asteraceae). 6. Seed bank. Seed Science Research 8, 65–74CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walck, J.L., Baskin, C.C. and Baskin, J.M. (1999) Seeds of Thalictrum mirabile (Ranunculaceae) require cold stratification for loss of nondeep simple morphophysiological dormancy. Canadian Journal of Botany 77, 1769–1776CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Warr, S.J., Thompson, K. and Kent, M. (1993) Seed banks as a neglected area of biogeographic research: a review of literature and sampling techniques. Progress in Physical Geography 17, 329–347CrossRefGoogle Scholar