scholarly journals Overabundant native herbivore impacts on native plant communities in south‐eastern Australia

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (S1) ◽  
pp. 9-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
John W. Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
South Eastern Australia

Agricultural weeds and coastal saltmarsh in south-eastern Australia: an insurmountable problem?

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Hurst ◽  
Paul I. Boon
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Coastal Wetlands ◽  
Land Reclamation ◽  
Vascular Plant ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Pasture Grass ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
South Eastern Australia

It is often assumed that saline coastal wetlands experience environmental conditions so severe that they are largely immune to invasion by exotic plant species. The belief is implicit in many older reviews of threats to mangroves and coastal saltmarshes, where a limited range of vascular plant taxa, often focussing on *Spartina, (throughout the paper an asterisk denotes an introduced (exotic) species as per Carr 2012) have been invoked as the major species of concern. Even though the weed flora of southern Australia is derived largely from agriculture and horticulture, neither of which includes many species tolerant of waterlogged, variably saline environments, a recent assessment of Victorian saline coastal wetlands indicated that exotic plants were the third-most pervasive threat, after land ‘reclamation’ and grazing. Tall wheat grass, *Lophopyrum ponticum (Podp.) A.Love., is one of the most severe and widely distributed weeds of saline coastal wetlands in south-eastern Australia. It is promoted by the agricultural extension arm of the Victorian government as a salt-tolerant pasture grass; however, its broad ecological amplitude and robust life form make it a most serious invader of upper saltmarsh in Victoria. We assessed the effectiveness of different control measures, including slashing and herbicides, for the management of *L. ponticum infestations (and their side effects on saltmarsh communities) in the Western Port region of Victoria. A nominally monocot-specific herbicide widely used to control *Spartina, Fluazifop-P, was ineffective in controlling *L. ponticum. The broad-spectrum systemic herbicide glyphosate was more effective in controlling *L. ponticum, but had undesirable impacts on native plant species. Controlling weeds in coastal wetlands using available herbicides for use near coastal waterways would seem to remain problematic.

Fire exclusion and soil texture interact to influence temperate grassland flora in south-eastern Australia

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
pp. 417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Moxham ◽  
Josh Dorrough ◽  
Mick Bramwell ◽  
Brad J. Farmilo
Keyword(s):  
Soil Texture ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Temperate Grassland ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Temperate Grasslands ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Fire Exclusion ◽  
South Eastern Australia

Fire has a major influence on the structure and composition of temperate grasslands and woodlands. We investigated whether the impacts of fire exclusion on a temperate grassland plant community varied according to the scale of investigation and soil texture. Ten sites with known fire histories were selected along a soil texture gradient in south-eastern Australia. Floristics and ground layer attributes were investigated at small (0.25 m2) and large (100 m2) spatial scales in regularly burnt and unburnt grasslands. Fire exclusion over a 10 year period led to declines in native species diversity, richness and cover at both spatial scales and in most cases effects were consistent regardless of soil texture. However, the richness of native plant species at small scales and the cover of native plants at large scales were most negatively influenced by fire exclusion on fine textured soils. Conversely, at large scales, exotic plant richness and cover were only weakly increased by fire exclusion. Responses of eight common species were modelled and in seven of these, fire exclusion was a strong predictor of occurrence, although both positive and negative responses were observed. These results reiterate the importance of frequent fire as a management tool in temperate grasslands, but also shed light on how sites may require specific fire management regimes depending on the underlying soil texture.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document