Stephen Elliott

Understanding and assisting natural regeneration processes in degraded seasonal evergreen forests in northern Thailand

The Thai government has recently embarked upon a nation-wide project to restore degraded forests. One approach could be to assist natural regeneration (ANR) by counteracting particular limiting factors, such as insufficient dispersal of tree seeds into cleared areas, lack of beneficial shade or excessive competition from weeds. This paper describes part of a 2-year project in northern Thailand which analysed, stage by stage, the regeneration from seed of a range of tree species in an abandoned agricultural clearing to identify limiting factors and develop appropriate ANR techniques to overcome them. Fruit production, seed dispersal, seed germination and seedling survival were monitored in the field. Experiments on selected species were carried out in the field and nursery to determine the effects of high light and low moisture on seed germination and the effect of above-ground weed interference on seedling performance in the first year. Three species are compared here to demonstrate how systematic study of regeneration processes can be of use in devising strategies to accelerate tree regeneration in deforested areas. Despite high levels of production of Beilschmiedia sp. seeds, the low rate of seed dispersal limited seedling recruitment in the clearing. In addition, seed germination was sharply reduced by lack of rainfall and the seedlings were highly susceptible to scorching by direct sunlight. Raising seedlings in nurseries and planting them out in degraded areas under the shade of existing herbaceous vegetation may be a suitable method of accelerating the regeneration of this species. Prunus cerasoides seeds were produced abundantly in both years of the study but seedling recruitment in the clearing was limited mainly by insufficient dispersal of its seeds into the cleared area. Under experimental conditions seeds germinated and seedlings established readily, so direct seed sowing in degraded areas may be appropriate. Alternatively, natural seed dispersal could be encouraged by improving the habitat for birds. Engelhardia spicata seeds were widely dispersed by wind and its regeneration was limited at the germination and early establishment stages. Physical obstruction by thick stem and leaf litter appeared to be a limiting factor. This barrier could be overcome by cutting back weeds (particularly grasses and ferns) or by shading them out with nurse trees.

Propagating framework tree species to restore seasonally dry tropical forest: implications of seasonal seed dispersal and dormancy

Abstract One effective approach to forest restoration in degraded tropical forestland is the so-called ‘framework species method’ which involves planting 20–30 indigenous forest tree species to re-establish a basic forest structure that catalyses the recovery of biodiversity. For the seasonally dry tropical forests of Doi Suthep-Pui National Park in northern Thailand, a provisional list of 36 potential framework species was compiled, from 19 different families representing a broad spectrum of the tree flora. This paper examines the seed germination characteristics of these species when grown as a nursery ‘crop’ for planting to restore degraded sites, focussing on germination phenology and dormancy. It considers how such characteristics affect the first stage of nursery production from seed collection to pricking out seedlings in the nursery. Twenty-nine species had a germination percentage of 60% or greater, which is acceptable for nursery production. The median length of dormancy (MLD) ranged from 7 days in the case of Erythrina subumbrans to 219 days for Lithocarpus garrettianus . Germination was defined as rapid if the MLD occurred within 3 weeks, and slow if occurring after 12 weeks. Twelve species germinated rapidly and eight germinated slowly, the remainder being intermediate. Seedling emergence ranged over a period of 7 days in the case of Erythrina stricta and E. subumbrans to 322 days in the case of L. garrettianus .

Research needs for restoring seasonal tropical forests in Thailand: accelerated natural regeneration

Accelerated natural regeneration (ANR) is a relatively cheap method of reforestation, which encourages natural establishment of indigenous trees and shrubs. It requires a low input of labour, but a high input of ecological information. In this paper, the knowledge required to predict and manipulate the natural regeneration of seasonal tropical forest is reviewed and areas in need of further research are identified. Regeneration will be influenced by five groups of potentially limiting factors; site resources (soil and microclimate); competition with weeds; site disturbance; occurrence of established woody plants or their propagules; seed dispersal by wild animals and birds. This paper considers each of these, their interactions with seasons, and each other. Collation of existing information on these topics, combined with the suggested further research, should facilitate the creation of tools that will enable practitioners to judge the regeneration potential of sites and to select the most appropriate ANR techniques.

The Role of Botanic Gardens in the Science and Practice of Ecological Restoration

Many of the skills and resources associated with botanic gardens and arboreta, including plant taxonomy, horticulture, and seed bank management, are fundamental to ecological restoration efforts, yet few of the worlds botanic gardens are involved in the science or practice of restoration. Thus, we examined the potential role of botanic gardens in these emerging fields. We believe a reorientation of certain existing institutional strengths, such as plant-based research and knowledge transfer, would enable many more botanic gardens worldwide to provide effective science-based support to restoration efforts. We recommend botanic gardens widen research to include ecosystems as well as species, increase involvement in practical restoration projects and training practitioners, and serve as information hubs for data archiving and exchange.

Bird communities and seedling recruitment in restoring seasonally dry forest using the framework species method in Northern Thailand

This study examined the effects of framework trees, planted in 1998, and bird community on the natural recruitment of tree seedling species in a forest restoration experiment designed to test the framework species method of forest restoration established by Chiang Mai University’s Forest Restoration Research Unit (FORRU-CMU). Tree seedlings establishing beneath five framework tree species: Erythrina subumbrans (Hassk.) Merr., Hovenia dulcis Thunb., Melia toosendan Sieb. & Zucc., Prunus cerasoides D.Don and Spondias axillaries Roxb., were surveyed. Five trees of each species were selected in the 8-year-old trial plots. Birds visiting each tree were observed to determine possible seed dispersal activities. Thirty-six tree seedling species were found beneath the selected trees, of which 11 were wind-dispersed and 25 were animal-dispersed. The population density of animal-dispersed tree seedlings was higher than the wind-dispersed seedlings beneath all selected framework trees. The sample plots beneath P. cerasoides supported the highest population density of tree seedlings. Forty-nine bird species were recorded visiting the framework trees between July 2006 and June 2007. Non-frugivorous birds were recorded more frequently than the frugivorous birds. The effects of birds on seedling recruitment were different among each of the selected framework tree. Bigger trees, which attracted high number of birds by providing food resources, roosting and nesting sites may increase the seed deposition more than smaller trees with fewer attractants.

Research needs for restoring tropical forests in Southeast Asia for wildlife conservation: framework species selection and seed propagation

Some governments in Southeast Asia, such as those of Thailand and Vietnam have clear policies to restore large areas of degraded land to native forest. However, knowledge needed for the success of these ambitious programmes is still inadequate, and considerable further research is required. Furthermore, very little literature is available to conservation practitioners about the restoration of tropical forests for biodiversity conservation. This paper introduces the framework species method of forest restoration, which is being developed to restore forests in Thailand. The paper examines the potential for adoption of this technique in different forest types across the Southeast Asia region, and identifies priorities for future research needed before the method can be widely implemented. These include the identification of forest types, the selection of candidate framework species, maintenance of genetic diversity, and development of methods of seed collection and germination.

Propagating framework trees to restore seasonally dry tropical forest in northern Thailand

In northern Thailand, a growing interest in restoring forests for wildlife conservation and environmental protection is increasing demand for high quality planting stock of a wide range of native forest tree species. Since most native tree species have never been grown in nurseries, their production is hindered by a lack of knowledge of basic propagation methods. Basic data on germination and performance of ten indigenous ‘framework’ tree species, Castanopsis acuminatissima, Dalbergia rimosa, Diospyros glandulosa, Eugenia albiflora, Ficus glaberrima var. glaberrima, Lithocarpus craibianus, Melia toosendan, Prunus cerasoides, Quercus semiserrata and Spondias axillaris were collected during the production process. Different species produce seeds at different times of the year and they have different growth rates, yet saplings must attain a plantable size by the optimum planting time i.e. the start of the wet season. Germination percentages ranged from 38 to 89%, and the time in the nursery to reach a plantable size ranged from 119 days for Prunus cerasoides, when it had reached a mean height of 48.6 cm (SD 7.9), to 609 days for Lithocarpus craibianus, when it had reached mean height of 40.5 cm (SD 10.6). This paper discusses the scheduling of production for these candidate framework species.

When does seed limitation matter for scaling up reforestation from patches to landscapes

Restoring forest to hundreds of millions of hectares of degraded land has become a centerpiece of international plans to sequester carbon and conserve biodiversity. Forest landscape restoration will require scaling up ecological knowledge of secondary succession from small-scale field studies to predict forest recovery rates in heterogeneous landscapes. However, ecological field studies reveal widely divergent times to forest recovery, in part due to landscape features that are difficult to replicate in empirical studies. Seed rain can determine reforestation rate and depends on landscape features that are beyond the scale of most field studies. We develop mathematical models to quantify how landscape configuration affects seed rain and forest regrowth in degraded patches. The models show how landscape features can alter the successional trajectories of otherwise identical patches, thus providing insight into why some empirical studies reveal a strong effect of seed rain on secondary succession, while others do not. We show that seed rain will strongly limit reforestation rate when patches are near a threshold for arrested succession, when positive feedbacks between tree canopy cover and seed rain occur during early succession, and when directed dispersal leads to between-patch interactions. In contrast, seed rain has weak effects on reforestation rate over a wide range of conditions, including when landscape-scale seed availability is either very high or very low. Our modeling framework incorporates growth and survival parameters that are commonly estimated in field studies of reforestation. We demonstrate how mathematical models can inform forest landscape restoration by allowing land managers to predict where natural regeneration will be sufficient to restore tree cover. Translating quantitative forecasts into spatially targeted interventions for forest landscape restoration could support target goals of restoring millions of hectares of degraded land and help mitigate global climate change.

Genetic variation of Prunus cerasoides D. Don, a framework tree species in northern Thailand

Prunus cerasoides D. Don has been identified as an excellent ‘framework tree species’ for restoring evergreen forest in seasonally dry tropical forestlands. Here we describe the level of microsatellite variation in P. cerasoides trees within and among three National Parks in northern Thailand: Doi Suthep-Pui, Doi Inthanon and Doi Ang Khang, using published primers developed for peach, sweet cherry and sour cherry. The five microsatellite loci employed detected a total of 41 alleles, with the average number of alleles per locus per study site ranging from 2.7 to 8.0 (n = 82). The value of FST over the three sites was 0.115, indicating that while the majority of genetic diversity may be contained within sites, they should be considered as genetically distinct. The implications of this for seed collection of this species for forest restoration are discussed.

Genetic diversity of Castanopsis acuminatissima (Bl.) A. DC. in northern Thailand and the selection of seed trees for forest restoration

Castanopsis acuminatissima (Bl.) A. DC. is one of a number of ‘framework species’ which are being planted to restore seasonally dry tropical forests in northern Thailand. This study describes the level of microsatellite variation within and among three populations of this species in three National Parks in northern Thailand: Doi Suthep-Pui, Doi Inthanon and Jae Sawn, using published primers developed for Castanopsis cuspidata var. sieboldii Nakai. The five microsatellite loci employed in this study detected a total of 54 alleles (n = 72). The informativeness of the microsatellite loci varied from six to 18 alleles, with an average of 10.8 alleles found over all loci. The mean observed heterozygosities in the three populations showed no significant deviations from Hardy-Weinberg expectations. The vast majority of genetic diversity was contained within the populations, with no significant differentiation between them (FST = 0.006). Algorithms were designed to capture microsatellite diversity, and the rationale for using microsatellite markers to inform genetic conservation is discussed. The implications for seed collection of C. acuminatissima for forest restoration are also discussed.