• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.99-109
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• 2007

The main objectives of this comparative study were 1) to compare the floristic similarity of species composition between the extant vegetation and seedlings from soil seed bank and 2) to quantify the potential contribution of soil seed bank to revegetation of forest in a constructed area, which is called "ecological impact mitigation" in conjunction with the power plant extension. Forest topsoil of seven plots was collected from the surface soil after measurements were taken on the ground vegetation in each plot. A greenhouse experiment was conducted and monitored to analyze the germination potential of soil seed bank. The forest topsoil was spread on plastic trays ($0.7m^2{\times}7$) filled with a 5cm layer of sterilized potting mix. The results of monitoring for 2 years in a greenhouse were as follows : 1) seedlings of soil seed bank per 4.9$m^2$ were 1,269 with 36 species (1st year) and 2,615 with 25 species (2nd year). 2) 38${\pm}$8% of the flora species were germinated from soil seed bank. It can be concluded that the use of soil seed bank would be effective to promote establishment of diverse species and vegetation. However, it behooves to continue monitoring on succession of vegetation and pursue revegetation with other methods for ecological restoration. Finally, adequate topsoil deposit and gathering methods should be studied properly.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.145-155
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• 2018

In a monsoonal climate, the soil seed bank can play an important role in plant regeneration after the severe annual floods that disturb above-ground vegetation within the riparian zone. To investigate the relationship between the soil seed bank and vegetation, we measured the species composition of the soil seed bank and the extant above-ground vegetation in six major plant communities (Artemisia selengensis, Miscanthus sacchariflorus, Persicaria nodosa, Phalaris arundinacea, Phragmites japonica, and Rorippa palustris) in the Cheongmicheon Stream, Korea. A total of 21 species germinated from the floodplain soil seed banks. The most diverse seed bank (21 species) was found in the A. selengensis community, wheres the lowest number of species was found in the R. palustris community (2 species). Most soil seed banks were composed of annuals (90%), exceptions being Rumex crispus and Artemisia princeps, which are perennial ruderals. The similarity of species composition between the soil seed bank and above-ground vegetation was low with Sorensen's similarity indices averaging 29% (range 12 - 42%). Crucially, existing dominant perennials of the extant vegetation including A. selengensis, M. sacchariflorus, P. japonica and P. arundinacea were absent from the soil seed bank. In conclusion, the soil seed banks of the floodplains of the Cheongmicheon Stream were mainly composed of viable seeds of ruderal plants, which could germinate rapidly after severe flood disturbance. The soil seed bank may, therefore, be useful for the restoration of the early succession stages of riparian vegetation after flood disturbances.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.81-90
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• 2008

Recently, geofiber(polyester) reinforced soil was added on soil-seed mixture spray to control erosion and to improve vegetation growth on rocky slope sites. This research was conducted to compare vegetation effects and soil hardness on three types of soil-seed mixture spray on stone gabion river bank [A type : soil-seed mixture spray underlying 30cm thick sand with geofiber(geofiber reinforced soil system), B type : soil-seed mixture spray underlying 30cm thick sand without geofiber, C type : soil-seed mixture spray]. Evaluation were made concerning vegetation coverage, soil hardness and moisture content. The results of this study showed that A type system was effective for the growth of vegetation and soil hardness when compareed to B type and C type. A type and B type showed higher covering rate than C type on stone gabion river bank, and especially A type showed the highest covering rate. Soil hardness and water content were high on A type vegetation system compared to B type and C type. We noted that high soil hardness and high moisture content with geofiber(geofiber reinforced soil system) were effective both to control erosion from water current impact and to be high coverage and species of vegetation on stone gabion river bank.

• Journal of Korean Elementary Science Education
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.284-297
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• 2012

We developed an educational program using soil seed bank for promoting ecological literacy of children. The initial program was based on the modification of scientific methods used by ecologists. A pilot application was conducted to 4th~6th grade students. In that result, the program was most effective to 4th grade students in terms of ecological knowledge and attitude. Observation of plants in outdoor was the most interesting activity and soil seed bank experiment was the most useful activity to the students. The educational period from late March to early November was too long to keep interest for participants. In the final program, we suggested 3 months and 2 weeks education period (from the 4th week of March to the first week of July) and the 4th grade students as a target. The program consisted of 7 activities, which are "Beginning the soil seed banks observation", "Comparing plant community in each soil seed bank", "My friends, sprout", "How do you come here?", "Finding the hided plants in my school garden", "Why did the soil seed banks change?", and "Inquiring about relationship between plants and their environments". These activities include the process of student's participation of sampling and setting soil seed banks around their school, and observing and identifying the seedlings. Through these activities, students can understand the concept of soil seed banks, develop their ecological knowledge, eco-centric attitude, and ecological sensibility and inquire about the relationship between vegetation from soil seed banks and their environments.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.181-188
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• 2003

In this study, soil seed and bud bank analysis were performed to abbess the mass of potential vegetation in soils less than 1 year old after covered and estimate the amount of seed bank transport through construction in urban area. The ratio of exotic species number to total species number in study sites and the landfill control site was 0.29 and 0.39, respectively. All plots pooled, mean species number and total mean seedling density per $\m^2$ in the top 10 cm of soil was 11$\pm$0 (average$\pm$S.E.) and 8037$\pm$221.Total plant seeds by artificial soil trasnsfer were estimated to be 53 thousand million $m^{-2}yr^{-1}$ in 10 cm soil depth. It reveals that soil transfer accelerates seeds and vegetation movement and makes urban vegetation mixed and common.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.90-102
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• 2018

Background: We sought to understand the relationship between the seed bank and vegetation in abandoned rice paddies in South Korea, in order to guide management of these sites. We investigated the floristic composition and species richness of the soil seed bank and ground vegetation in former paddies along three seral gradients (wet meadow, young forest, and mature forest) in Gwangneung Forest Biosphere Reserve. Results: Seed bank samples contained 59 species, of which the dominant families were Cyperaceae, Gramineae, and Polygonaceae. Species richness and seedling density (59 taxa and 19,121 germinants from all samples) were high. Carex spp. (11, 921 germinants) were the dominant taxa. The species composition in the seed bank changed gradually as the land transitioned from wet meadow to mature forest. Sørensen's index of similarity between above- and below-ground vegetation was 29.3% for wet meadow, 10.8% for young forest, and 2.1% for mature forest. Germinant density also declined, with 10, 256 germinants for wet meadow, 6445 germinants for young forest, and 2420 germinants for mature forest. Conclusions: Changes in aboveground environment and life history traits such as amphicarpic plants, likely affect the composition of soil seed bank species. Abandoned paddy fields may be good sites for restoration of wetland forest and conservation of wetland habitat. Some intervention may be required to promote the recovery of a natural species assemblage.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.42-57
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• 2011

We described the above-ground plant species composition and measured a range of soil physico-chemical properties and the composition and size of the soil seed bank in the remnant natural vegetations on the flood plains of the Han River within Seoul, South Korea. We used analysis of variance and multivariate analyses to analyse the data and S${\o}$rensen's similarity index to compare the composition of the vegetation and seed banks. The soils were circum-neutral and composed of mainly sand and silt fractions with a very limited clay component; a gradient based on sand/clay proportions was identified. The soil seed banks varied markedly between- and within-sites and had much greater species diversity than the above-ground vegetation. Two of the major dominants in the vegetation (Miscanthus saccariflorus and Phragmites australis) were found at very low densities in the seed bank. The site differences appeared to be correlated with the sand-clay gradient, suggesting that the soil properties differentially affected seed inputs into the soil, or that the processes than controlled sediment deposition during floods was also important in differentially affecting seed deposition. Lastly, there was relatively little similarity between the vegetation, dominated mainly by perennials, and the seed bank which contained a relatively large proportion of annuals and biennials. This result suggests that after disturbance caused by flooding there is the potential for many other species to colonize. This may impinge on the regeneration potential of the sites and cause concern for the future conservation of these important remnants of natural vegetation.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.141-151
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• 2022

Soil seed banks as natural storage of plant seeds play an important role in the maintenance and regeneration of watershed. Natural regeneration potential of the soil seed bank of Land use types (LUTs) in Ogun River watershed (ORW) was investigated. ORW was stratified using proportionate sampling technique into Guinea Savannah (GS), Rainforest (RF) and Swamp Forest (SF) Ecological Zones (EZs). Three LUTs: Natural Forest (NF), Disturbed Forest (DF) and Farmland (FL) were purposively selected in GS: GSNF, GSDF, GSFL; RF: RFNF, RFDF, RFFL and SF: SFNF, SFDF, SFFL, respectively. Systematic line transects was used in the laying of the sample plots. Sample plots of 25 m×25 m were established in alternate positions. Ten 1 m×1 m quadrats were randomly laid for soil core sampling from previously randomly selected ten plots. The core samples (10) were pooled per plot in each LUT and placed in individual trays. Ten trays with sterilized soil were used as control. The trays were watered regularly and checked for seedlings emergence fortnightly for 18 months. The experimental design used was 3×3 factorial experiments. ANOVA, Diversity index (H') and Similarity index (SI) were used to analyze the data. There was significant difference in seedling emergence among ecological zones and land use types (p<0.05). A total of 4,400 seedlings emerged from the soil samples. All species were distributed among 32 families. FL in the RF had the highest number of germinated seeds (705±37.33 seedlings) followed by DF in the RF (701±49.6 seedlings). The lowest emergence was in NF of the SF (199±28.41 seedlings). DF in the RF had highest number of species (34) distributed among 22 families. Emergence from soil seed bank of NF in ORW was generally with more of tree species than herbs that were predominant in FL and DF.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.127-135
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• 2011

This study was carried out in each three study areas of Pinus densiflora community and Quercus mongolica community from March 5th, 2008 to October 15th, 2010 to analyze the relationship between seed bank and the actual vegetation of the lower layer. Based on the relationship between the lower layer of actual vegetation and the germination of seed bank, all of three study areas, the similarity of the actual vegetation of the lower layer and seed bank were high in Plot 1 (84.62%) and Plot 3 (89.91%). As for Quercus mongolica community, the similarity was high between the actual vegetation of the lower layer and seed bank in Plot 4 (82.24%) and Plot 6 (89.47%). Especially, the germination of the pine seed banks in the Pinus densiflora community compared to other tree species appeared in all. In Quercus mongolica community, Quercus mongolica did not appear among the seeds germinated in the seek bank, but the other tree species constituting the under layer of the community. In case of the restoration based on the actual vegetation, it is desirable to sue the lower layer of vegetation as the model for the making of its alternatives for restoration works of the species.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.400-420
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• 2019

The aims of the study were to analyze (1) the effects of Prosopis juliflora (Prosopis) on the spatial distribution and soil seed banks (SSB) diversity and density, (2) the effects of environmental factors on SSB diversity and density (number of seeds in the soil per unit area), and (3) the effects of animal fecal droppings on SSB diversity, density, and dispersal. Aboveground vegetation data were collected from different Prosopis-infested habitats from quadrats (20 × 20 m) in Prosopis thickets, Prosopis + native species stand, non-invaded woodlands, and open grazing lands. In each Prosopis-infested habitats, soil samples were collected from the litter layer and three successive soil layer, i.e., 0-3 cm, 3-6 cm, and 6-9 cm. Seeds from soil samples and animal fecal matter were separated in the green house using the seedling emergence technique. Invasion of Prosopis had significant effects on the soil seed bank diversity. Results revealed that the mean value of the Shannon diversity of non-invaded woodlands was being higher by 19.2%, 18.5%, and 11.0% than Prosopis thickets; Prosopis + native species stand and open grazing lands, respectively. The seed diversity and richness, recovered from 6-9-cm-deep layer were the highest. On the other hand, the density of Prosopis seeds was the highest in the litter layer. About 156 of seeds/kg (92.9%) of seeds were germinated from cattle fecal matter. However, in a small proportion of seedlings, 12 of seeds/kg (7.1%) were germinated from shot fecal matter. Thus, as the seeds in the soil were low in the study areas, in situ and ex situ conservation of original plants and reseeding of persistent grass species such as Cynodon dactylon, Cenchrus ciliaris, Chrysopogon plumulosus, and Brachiaria ramosa are recommended.