Habitat preferences as related to the prolonged dormancy of perennial herbs and ferns

Prolonged dormancy (hereafter dormancy), a phenomenon in which a perennial herbaceous plant does not sprout for one or more years, is examined. The phenomenon may be more frequent than stated so far and discovery of its role in plant life history and performance is still underway. Data from publishe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Plant ecology 2010-09, Vol.210 (1), p.111-123
Main Authors: Reintal, Margit, Tali, Kadri, Haldna, Marina, Kull, Tiiu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acid soils
Applied Ecology
Biodiversity
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Botany
Calcareous soils
Community & Population Ecology
Dormancy
Ecology
Ellenberg's indicator values
Environmental factors
Environmental stress
Ferns
Habitat preferences
Habitats
Herbs
Life history
Life Sciences
Nitrogen
Plant Ecology
Plants
Population dynamics
Population ecology
Soil fertility
Soil water
Species
Terrestial Ecology
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Summary:Prolonged dormancy (hereafter dormancy), a phenomenon in which a perennial herbaceous plant does not sprout for one or more years, is examined. The phenomenon may be more frequent than stated so far and discovery of its role in plant life history and performance is still underway. Data from published papers was reviewed and all known species exhibiting dormancy were analysed from the aspect of species ecological values. Adaptation to environmental factors (light, moisture, pH and nitrogen as estimated by Ellenberg indicator values) influences the maximum duration of dormancy. A higher proportion of plants are dormant in species that prefer to grow in good light conditions, dry sites and infertile soil. The duration of dormant period is longer in species that prefer to grow in dry sites and/or calcareous soils. A range of factors, we believe, control plant behaviour, however, it is suggested that environmental stress is the principal factor inducing dormancy.
ISSN:1385-0237
1573-5052
DOI:10.1007/s11258-010-9742-9