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Early response of late-successional species to nurse shrub manipulations in degraded high country, New Zealand

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Abstract

In post-disturbance grasslands in New Zealand shrubs can serve as nurse plants. However, while many canopy trees may establish under a shrub canopy, shade may also restrict seedling establishment. We assessed the potential of shrubs and canopy manipulations in restoring mature forest species in a stressful environment. Mountain beech (Fuscospora cliffortioides, Nothofagaceae) seedlings were planted in October 2015 and December 2016 in post-disturbance grasslands. Growth and survival were monitored over three growing seasons in five canopy treatments: open grassland, mānuka (Leptospermum scoparium, Myrtaceae) shrubland with intact canopy, mixed-species shrubland with intact canopy, artificial gaps in mānuka shrubland; and the grassland edge of the mixed-species shrubland. Understorey light transmission and canopy openness were quantified during the first growing season using hemispherical photos. Canopy manipulations caused significant differences in the light availability and canopy openness among treatments. We observed that seedlings performed better in the mānuka shrub with gap and mixed-species shrub canopies (intact and edge treatments), perhaps due to moderate canopy openness in these treatments compared to open grasslands and intact mānuka canopy. Growth and survival were positively associated with moderate log(light) levels, which correspond to light conditions in manuka with gaps and intact mixed-species shrubs and are likely to represent the net effects of these treatments. The results demonstrated that early-successional shrubs could be managed as nurse plants to control the effect of over-shading and facilitate the growth and survival of canopy species in a stressful environment.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge Dr. Laura M. Young for her inputs and assistance during the conceptualization and establishment of the experimental set-up for this study. The New Zealand Government provided the scholarship to A. M. Tulod through the New Zealand ASEAN Scholarship Award.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Forestry, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 8400, Christchurch, 8140, New Zealand

    Adrian M. Tulod & David A. Norton

  2. College of Forestry and Environmental Science, Central Mindanao University, University Town, Musuan, Maramag, Bukidnon, 8710, Philippines

    Adrian M. Tulod

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Correspondence to Adrian M. Tulod.

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Tulod, A.M., Norton, D.A. Early response of late-successional species to nurse shrub manipulations in degraded high country, New Zealand. New Forests 51, 849–868 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-019-09764-3

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