The use of mulch and shading improves the survival of sclerophyllous species established in island plots in central Chile
Autor
Martínez-Herrera, Eduardo
Bravo, Valeria
Grez, Iván
Vaswani, Suraj A.
Toro, Nicole
Yáñez, Marco A
Espinoza, Sergio E
Abarca, Betsabé
Faundez, Ángela
Quiroz, Iván A.
Magni, Carlos
Fecha
2023Resumen
Climate change is threatening the restoration efforts in Mediterranean ecosystems, and
there is still little knowledge about the responses of some sclerophyllous species to plant management
techniques. This study assessed the effects of the planting date, use of mulch, and controlling light
levels on the early survival and growth of sclerophyllous species established in island plots. A factorial
design was installed in the Metropolitan Region of central Chile, with a treatment combination that
included three planting dates (January: midsummer, April: autumn, and June: winter), three light
levels (full sun exposed (T0), shaded at 35% (T35), and shaded at 70% (T70)), and two mulch levels
(no mulch versus mulch application). Additionally, we tested the species effects within the island plot.
We measured survival, as well as plant diameter and height increments, 1 year after establishment.
Each island plot contained three seedlings of Acacia caven Mol., two of Quillaja saponaria Mol., two
of Maytenus boaria Mol., one of Schinus polygamus (Cav.) Cabrera, and one of Cryptocarya alba (Mol.)
Losser. We found a significant main effect for all the factors assessed. Despite the high mortality
in the trial, survival was increased around fourfold by planting in winter, using mulch, or using
either of the shading levels. At the species level, average survival ranged from 7% for C. alba to
27% for S. polygamous. To increase plant survival in the restoration of this ecosystem, it is necessary
to intensify the management techniques and the use of these types of eco-technologies; if not, the
restoration may fail.
Fuente
Applied Sciences, 13(14), 8333Link de Acceso
Click aquí para ver el documentoIdentificador DOI
doi.org/10.3390/app13148333Colecciones
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