Life Sciences Commons^™

Vegetation Dynamics And Mesophication In Response To Conifer Encroachment Within An Ultramafic System, J. Burgess, K. Szlavecz, N. Rajakaruna, S. Lev, C. Swan

Biological Sciences

The biological, ecological, and evolutionary significance of serpentine habitats has long been recognised. We used an integrated physiochemical dataset combining plot spatial data with temporal data from tree cores to evaluate changes in soils and vegetation. Data suggest that this unique habitat is undergoing a transition, endangering local biodiversity and endemic plant species. The objective of this work was to analyse the vegetation dynamics of a xeric serpentine savanna located in the Mid-Atlantic, USA. We employed vegetation surveys of 32 10 × 15 m quadrats to obtain woody species composition, density, basal area, and developed a spatial physiochemical dataset of …

Ecotypic Differentiation Of Mid-Atlantic Quercus Species In Response To Ultramafic Soils, Jerry Burgess, Katalin Szlavecz, Nishanta Rajakaruna, Christopher Swan

Biological Sciences

Spatial heterogeneity of soil conditions combined with intraspecific variation confer site-specific edaphic tolerance, resulting in local adaptation and speciation. To understand the geoecological processes controlling community assembly of woodland tree species on serpentine and mafic soils, we investigated resource gradients and provenance (geographic area of propagule collection) as variables affecting typical representative upland oak (Quercus) species distribution. Accordingly, we conducted a year-long reciprocal transplant experiment in the greenhouse with serpentine and mafic soils, using seedlings of five oak species (Quercus marilandica, Q. stellata, Q. montana, Q. michauxii and Q. alba). All seedlings, regardless …

Immobilization And Phytotoxicity Reduction Of Heavy Metals In Serpentine Soil Using Biochar, I. Herath, P. Kumarathilaka, A. Navarantne, N. Rajakaruna, M. Vithanage

Biological Sciences

Purpose

Serpentine soils derived from ultramafic rocks release elevated concentrations of toxic heavy metals into the environment. Hence, crop plants cultivated in or adjacent to serpentine soil may experience reduced growth due to phytotoxicity as well as accumulate toxic heavy metals in edible tissues. We investigated the potential of biochar (BC), a waste byproduct of bioenergy industry in Sri Lanka, as a soil amendment to immobilize Ni, Cr, and Mn in serpentine soil and minimize their phytotoxicity.

Materials and methods

The BC used in this study was a waste byproduct obtained from a Dendro bioenergy industry in Sri Lanka. This …