The Colonization of Sand Dunes After Stabilization with Marram Grass (Ammophila Arenaria)

1970 ◽  
Vol 58 (3) ◽  
pp. 653 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. G. Hewett
1990 ◽  
Vol 68 (7) ◽  
pp. 1560-1568 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. Van der Putten ◽  
S. R. Troelstra

The presence of harmful soil organisms in the root zone of Ammophila arenaria (marram grass) was examined by biotesting. For this investigation three locations along the sandy shoreline of The Netherlands were chosen: Voorne, Texel, and Schouwen. At all three locations harmful organisms were detected in sand from stable dunes, as well as in sand from mobile dunes (degenerated and vigorous A. arenaria, respectively). In beach sand, however, no harmful organisms occurred. Since A. arenaria shows vigorous growth only when it is buried regularly by windblown sand from the beach, it is concluded that this sand deposition enables the plants to escape from harmful soil organisms. Ammophila arenaria and Calammophila baltica (purple or hybrid marram grass) from the Voorne location were grown outdoors in containers filled with sand from the beach, the mobile dunes, and the stable dunes, and sterilized sand from the stable dunes. Biomass production of both species was highest in sterilized sand from the stable dune, followed by (in descending order) beach sand, sand from the mobile dune, and unsterilized sand from the stable dune. As compared with A. arenaria, however, growth of C. baltica was reduced less and without mortality of cuttings. Degree of growth reduction by harmful soil organisms could not be related to numbers of plant parasitic nematodes. Key words: Ammophila arenaria, Calammophila baltica, coastal sand dunes, succession, harmful soil organisms.


2012 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 450 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Hayes ◽  
Jamie B. Kirkpatrick

There is strong observational evidence that marram grass Ammophila arenaria transforms vegetation when it invades temperate coastal sand dunes. Because of contemporaneous marram grass introduction, sea level rise, climate change and coastal land use change, we use control dune systems to test the hypotheses that marram grass displaces native sand-binding grasses, reduces the area of bare sand and facilitates shrub invasion. We mapped vegetation from aerial photographs at four times between 1948 and 2007 on four pairs of sand dune systems, with one of each pair being heavily invaded by marram grass during the period of observation. We calculated the transitions between cover types between times. On the dune systems with marram grass, dunes became taller and more regular, native sand-binders became rare, bare sand decreased in area and native shrubs colonised the stabilised dunes. In the absence of marram grass the dunes remained dynamic, with much bare sand. At two of these control sites, increases in wind strength and sea level may have facilitated the development of transgressive dunes and eroded the native sand-binders. At the remaining two control sites, native sand-binders created low incipient foredunes. Shrub invasion occurred at most control sites. We conclude that marram grass does displace native sand-binders and decrease the proportion of bare sand, but that shrub invasion is partly independent of its introduction.


Author(s):  
A. J. Willis

SynopsisWith the gradation of intensities of environmental factors from the strand-line to stable inland areas, coastal dunes show many ecological phenomena especially clearly. These are reviewed broadly, with some emphasis on topics on which important advances are being made. The nutrient status of dune soil and changes with time are shown with reference to several dune systems. Changes in major nutrients are given for Braunton Burrows, north Devon, where the influence of nitrogen fixation by Lotus corniculatus is illustrated. The effects of sand burial on plants are considered, and details given of the root systems of vigorous and relict marram; factors which may affect its decline in vigour are reviewed. Also discussed is the likely significance of nematodes in the decline of Hippophaë rhamnoides. Reasons for the richness of the dune flora are considered and also some autecological studies. At the physiological level, reference is made to the water relations of plants and at the biochemical level to the occurrence and possible ecological importance of stress metabolites. Life strategies, phenology, survivorship, competition and the population ecology of dune plants are reviewed and also the interaction of ragwort (Senecio jacobaea) and cinnabar moth (Tyria jacobaeae). The population genetics of dune plants is illustrated by reference to Festuca rubra and Ammophila arenaria and of animals to Cepaea nemoralis.The abundance and ecological relationships of the invertebrate fauna are exemplified by surveys at Spurn Point, extensive investigations on spiders and the influence of marram on arthropod communities. The ecology of the natterjack load is considered in relation to conservation and the effects of large animal grazers in relation to the diversity of vegetation.


Nematology ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wim van der Putten ◽  
Henk Duyts ◽  
E. Pernilla Brinkman

AbstractWe studied the effects of intra- and interspecific competition on the abundance of endoparasitic nematodes and assessed the consequences for biomass production of the natural dune grass Ammophila arenaria. Pratylenchus penetrans was limited by intraspecific competition and it suppressed the abundance of Heterodera arenaria, whilst the interaction between H. arenaria and Meloidogyne maritima was neutral. Pratylenchus penetrans and H. arenaria reduced plant biomass, whereas M. maritima did not. Plant biomass was not differently affected by adding one or two nematode species. When added to older plants, numbers of H. arenaria and M. maritima were higher but numbers of P. penetrans were lower, resulting in less reduction of plant biomass. We discuss our results on this natural system with respect to patterns of interspecific nematode competition observed in agricultural systems.


Mycorrhiza ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 543-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susana Rodríguez-Echeverría ◽  
Helena Freitas

1997 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. van der Laan ◽  
O. F. R. van Tongeren ◽  
W. H. van der Putten ◽  
G. Veenbaas

Author(s):  
M. Anwar Maun

Even a cursory look on foredune plant communities shows vigorous dense stands of dune species in areas with moderate recurrent sand accretion levels specific for each plant species (Disraeli 1984; Maun and Baye 1989; Maun 1998). The phenomenon has been well documented in species of Ammophila arenaria (Carey and Oliver 1918; Tansley 1953), Corynephorus canescens (Marshall 1965), A. breviligulata (Eldred and Maun 1982) and Calamovilfa longifolia (Maun 1985). Burial has a positive influence on growth and flowering of plants and debilitated populations of foredune plant species can be rejuvenated by sand deposition (Maun 1998). Clear evidence of this phenomenon was presented by Maze and Whalley (1992a), who examined population dynamics of Spinifex sericeus in five zones receiving different amounts of sand deposition on a coastal dune system of Australia: the sea side of the first dune ridge, crest of first dune ridge, swale, Acacia thickets and stable hind dunes. In the very dynamic area on the sea side or toe of the first dune ridge (high beach) with regular burial or erosion of up to 1 m or more the plants produced very vigorous stolons with long internodes. On the crest of the dune ridge with sand deposition of about 17.5 cm per year even though plants had fewer stolons, they responded to burial by growing upwards with long internodes. In Acacia thickets in spite of very little sand deposition, plants were vigorous with little or no dead material, produced stolons and grew upwards with some long and some short internodes, probably because of greater nitrogen content in the soil. However, in the swale (slack) with little or no sand deposition, plants showed strong clumping tendency with very short internodes, a large amount of dead material on the surface and very low vigour. Unburied nodes usually died. Similarly, in the stable sand dunes with little or no sand deposition debilitated low-vigour clumps with very few stolons were abundant. Another example of this decline was presented by Martin (1959) on a shoreline along the Atlantic coast of North Carolina. He measured deposition and deflation of sand on two transects and showed that as one moved inland from the shoreline the total deposition of sand decreased.


Botany ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 87 (3) ◽  
pp. 260-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janusz Błaszkowski ◽  
Przemysław Ryszka ◽  
Fritz Oehl ◽  
Sally Koegel ◽  
Andres Wiemken ◽  
...  

Two new arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal species, Glomus achrum sp. nov. and Glomus bistratum sp. nov. (Glomeromycota), are described and illustrated. Both species produce small, hyaline spores in aggregates formed in the soil and inside roots. Glomus achrum was associated with roots of Ammophila arenaria (L.) Link colonizing maritime dunes of the Vistula Bar in northern Poland, and G. bistratum occurred among vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhiza of Xanthium cf. spinosum growing in dunes of the Mediterranean Sea adjacent to Veriko, Greece. Spores of G. achrum are globose to subglobose, (25–)43(–55) µm in diameter, rarely egg-shaped, oblong to irregular, 15–45 µm × 55–65 µm. Their wall consists of three hyaline layers: a mucilaginous, short-lived outermost layer; a laminate middle layer composed of loose sublayers; and a flexible innermost layer. The outermost and the innermost layers stain deeply red in Melzer’s reagent. Spores of G. bistratum are globose to subglobose, (20–)29(–50) µm in diameter, and have a wall composed of two permanent, hyaline layers. The outer layer is unit, smooth, and the inner one laminate. Only the inner layer stains yellow in Melzer’s reagent. Both species formed vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhiza in single-species cultures with Plantago lanceolata  L. as the host plant. Phylogenetic analyses of partial 18S rDNA subunit and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region sequences placed G. achrum and G. bistratum into Glomus group A, but did not reveal any closely related described species. Environmental sequences from the public databases suggested that G. achrum occurred in at least two other plant species from geographically distant regions. No such evidence could be obtained for G. bistratum, which is currently known only from the type location.


2008 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 201-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. Gera Hol ◽  
Andre W. G. van der Wurff ◽  
Leif Skøt ◽  
Roger Cook

The genetic structure of marram grass populations at coastal and inland locations, 200 m apart, was investigated at three sites by means of amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) DNA markers. We expected a genetic differentiation between coastal and inland populations and more genetic variation in the coastal areas as a result of different events of colonization by different plant materials. An assignment test showed that the sampledAmmophila arenariacould be assigned to two groups based on AFLP data. The spatial distribution of the two AFLP types ofA. arenariavaried with sampling location. In two of the three locations, mainly one type (1) was found in the newly formed dunes. This type did also occur further landward, but the second type (2) was preferentially found in inland populations. Genetic diversity was very low and of similar value in both coastal and inland populations. For each site, outlier loci with respect toFSTvalue were identified, which may be indicative of different selection pressures in coastal compared with inland clusters. However, no identical outlier loci were found at all three sites. Possible explanations for the observed difference in distribution of type 1 and 2 populations between coastal and inland sites are discussed.


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