Control of seedling density on disturbed ground: role of seedling establishment for some midsuccessional, old-field species

In midsuccessional old fields, seedlings are often concentrated in patches of disturbed ground, such as earth mounds created by burrowing mammals. An experiment was conducted to determine whether interspecific variation in seedling density on mounds reflected interspecific variation in potential seedling establishment (i.e., the number of seedlings established per 1000 seeds sown). Seeds of 13 old-field forbs were sown on experimentally created mounds in an abandoned pasture. Their potential seedling establishment ranged from 0 to 156 seedlings per 1000 seeds sown, and seedling establishment was directly related to seed mass. The number of seedlings becoming established naturally on mounds ranged from 0.1 to 41 seedlings per mound for the 13 species. Natural seedling establishment and potential seedling establishment were not directly related. Instead, natural seedling establishment on mounds was correlated with species' frequency of occurrence off mounds. This suggests that seed availability may be more important than seedling establishment in controlling seedling density on mounds. However, if seed availability is unlimited or equal among species, then seedling establishment could control seedling density on disturbed ground. Key words: disturbance, seedling density, old field.