Heavy metal contamination of the biosphere has increased sharply over the last century. Anthropogenic activities such as industrialisation and demographic growth can be considered as the main causes of it. Soil contam...Heavy metal contamination of the biosphere has increased sharply over the last century. Anthropogenic activities such as industrialisation and demographic growth can be considered as the main causes of it. Soil contamination affects every organism and poses major environmental and human health problems worldwide. The issue has been addressed in the past and a few methodologies have been developed in order to effectively clean up the contaminated areas. However, many of these remedies are very aggressive and can damage the soil. This paper focuses on the use of gentler techniques, which take advantage of the properties of several plants and wildflowers that absorb heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and their potential application in megacities such as Hong Kong.展开更多
Background:Using native wildflowers for restoring marginal lands has gained considerable popularity.Establishment of wildflowers can be challenging due to several environmental factors.Restoring the microbial communit...Background:Using native wildflowers for restoring marginal lands has gained considerable popularity.Establishment of wildflowers can be challenging due to several environmental factors.Restoring the microbial community in degraded habitats can potentially result in the native plant performance and habitat restoration.This study was conducted to investigate the impact of native soil microbes and seeding depth on germination of south Texas native wildflowers.Two wildflower species,Ratibida columnifera(Nutt.)(Mexican Hat)and Verbesina encelioides(Cav.)(cowpen daisy),were treated with microbial wash extracted from native soils,and germination rate was recorded for 14-day period.We further analyzed the growth,biomass allocation,and root colonization by mycorrhizal fungi in these two plants growing them in a plant growth chamber for 6 weeks.To determine the impact of seeding depth,we planted the seeds of the two plant species at 2-cm,6-cm,and 12-cm depth and monitored germination and plant growth.Results:The two species responded differently to the seeding depth and microbial wash treatments.Microbial wash treatment resulted in higher germination rate in R.columnifera compared to control,while it did not have any impact on V.encelioides seed germination.While microbial treatment did not influence the total biomass,it had a significant impact on the biomass allocation in both the plant species.R.columnifera seeds germinated at both 2-cm and 6-cm depth and did not germinate at 12 cm,while the V.encelioides seeds germinated only at 2 cm and did not germinate at 6-cm or 12-cm seeding depth.Conclusions:While our results are species specific,our results indicate that native soil microbes can potentially improve the seed germination and growth of wildflowers.Our results also indicate the importance of specific seeding depth when sowing wildflower seeds for habitat restoration.展开更多
Human presence is detrimentally affecting natural environments. Glades are an example of such envi-ronments. As glades diminish in number, proper restoration efforts are essential for the preservation of the habitats...Human presence is detrimentally affecting natural environments. Glades are an example of such envi-ronments. As glades diminish in number, proper restoration efforts are essential for the preservation of the habitats’ unique ecosystems, biodiversity and natural processes. To ensure glade survivorship, evaluation of glade restoration efforts is critical. As indicators of the trophic level of producers in a food chain, wildflowers can serve as overall indicators of the restoration process. A comparison of wildflower species presence and abundance between recently restored and control glades offer insights into the restoration progress. In this paper, I propose the us-age of a novel method for assessing restoration effi-cacy. I outline step-by-step how to apply such a method. I then explain how the implementation of such a method can be used to address questions re-garding the restoration effort’s efficacy.展开更多
Biodiversity declines in an unprecedented way,mostly due to land use change.Restoration interventions proved to be one of the most effective tools to halt the decline,especially in ecosystems such as agricultural fiel...Biodiversity declines in an unprecedented way,mostly due to land use change.Restoration interventions proved to be one of the most effective tools to halt the decline,especially in ecosystems such as agricultural fields.Evidence-based,locally adapted recommendations on grassland restoration,however,are often missing,so we present a novel approach for such interventions that can be implemented anywhere and that are based on scientific rigor.In a recently started long-term field ecological study,we established 0.5 ha wildflower parcels,using a diverse local seed mixture of 32 insect-visited plant species in Central European agricultural landscapes in 2020.Our focus is on the landscape-scale effects of this ecological intensification on ecosystem services such as crop yield,pollination and pest control,and the long-term monitoring of the successional processes.The aim is to showcase an effective restoration protocol that could serve as a model for future farm management,and provide much-needed evidence for policy on landscape ecological restoration of international relevance.展开更多
文摘Heavy metal contamination of the biosphere has increased sharply over the last century. Anthropogenic activities such as industrialisation and demographic growth can be considered as the main causes of it. Soil contamination affects every organism and poses major environmental and human health problems worldwide. The issue has been addressed in the past and a few methodologies have been developed in order to effectively clean up the contaminated areas. However, many of these remedies are very aggressive and can damage the soil. This paper focuses on the use of gentler techniques, which take advantage of the properties of several plants and wildflowers that absorb heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and their potential application in megacities such as Hong Kong.
文摘Background:Using native wildflowers for restoring marginal lands has gained considerable popularity.Establishment of wildflowers can be challenging due to several environmental factors.Restoring the microbial community in degraded habitats can potentially result in the native plant performance and habitat restoration.This study was conducted to investigate the impact of native soil microbes and seeding depth on germination of south Texas native wildflowers.Two wildflower species,Ratibida columnifera(Nutt.)(Mexican Hat)and Verbesina encelioides(Cav.)(cowpen daisy),were treated with microbial wash extracted from native soils,and germination rate was recorded for 14-day period.We further analyzed the growth,biomass allocation,and root colonization by mycorrhizal fungi in these two plants growing them in a plant growth chamber for 6 weeks.To determine the impact of seeding depth,we planted the seeds of the two plant species at 2-cm,6-cm,and 12-cm depth and monitored germination and plant growth.Results:The two species responded differently to the seeding depth and microbial wash treatments.Microbial wash treatment resulted in higher germination rate in R.columnifera compared to control,while it did not have any impact on V.encelioides seed germination.While microbial treatment did not influence the total biomass,it had a significant impact on the biomass allocation in both the plant species.R.columnifera seeds germinated at both 2-cm and 6-cm depth and did not germinate at 12 cm,while the V.encelioides seeds germinated only at 2 cm and did not germinate at 6-cm or 12-cm seeding depth.Conclusions:While our results are species specific,our results indicate that native soil microbes can potentially improve the seed germination and growth of wildflowers.Our results also indicate the importance of specific seeding depth when sowing wildflower seeds for habitat restoration.
文摘Human presence is detrimentally affecting natural environments. Glades are an example of such envi-ronments. As glades diminish in number, proper restoration efforts are essential for the preservation of the habitats’ unique ecosystems, biodiversity and natural processes. To ensure glade survivorship, evaluation of glade restoration efforts is critical. As indicators of the trophic level of producers in a food chain, wildflowers can serve as overall indicators of the restoration process. A comparison of wildflower species presence and abundance between recently restored and control glades offer insights into the restoration progress. In this paper, I propose the us-age of a novel method for assessing restoration effi-cacy. I outline step-by-step how to apply such a method. I then explain how the implementation of such a method can be used to address questions re-garding the restoration effort’s efficacy.
基金This work was stimulated and partly funded by the European Union Horizon 2020 SUPER-G project(https://www.super-g.eu)under grant agreement No.774124.
文摘Biodiversity declines in an unprecedented way,mostly due to land use change.Restoration interventions proved to be one of the most effective tools to halt the decline,especially in ecosystems such as agricultural fields.Evidence-based,locally adapted recommendations on grassland restoration,however,are often missing,so we present a novel approach for such interventions that can be implemented anywhere and that are based on scientific rigor.In a recently started long-term field ecological study,we established 0.5 ha wildflower parcels,using a diverse local seed mixture of 32 insect-visited plant species in Central European agricultural landscapes in 2020.Our focus is on the landscape-scale effects of this ecological intensification on ecosystem services such as crop yield,pollination and pest control,and the long-term monitoring of the successional processes.The aim is to showcase an effective restoration protocol that could serve as a model for future farm management,and provide much-needed evidence for policy on landscape ecological restoration of international relevance.
