Can ecological restoration enhance the genetic diversity of plant species on a global scale?

Xinzeng Wei talks us through their recent meta-analysis, conducted with several colleagues, which found that ecological restoration does not significantly improve the genetic diversity of plant species as compared to reference or degraded populations. Wei et al instead suggest that using passive restoration, seeding, and mixed sources could significantly increase the genetic diversity of restored populations. The problem Human disturbance has led to several negative consequences … Continue reading Can ecological restoration enhance the genetic diversity of plant species on a global scale?

The context dependencies of how spillover from remnant grasslands enhances plant diversity in restorations

New research from Sperry et al. provides insights into prairie restoration practice. Associate Editor, Lars Brudvig explains more. Grasslands, including North American prairies, are widely restored through seed sowing onto abandoned agricultural lands. This approach to restoration holds great promise for promoting grassland biodiversity, yet restored prairies typically harbor fewer plant species than remnants without a history of agriculture, and plant diversity tends to decline … Continue reading The context dependencies of how spillover from remnant grasslands enhances plant diversity in restorations

Diversity robustly suppresses weeds in intensive grassland systems – with multiple translations

John Connolly and team comment on their recent article, Weed suppression greatly increased by plant diversity in intensively managed grasslands: a continental-scale experiment. As well as this English summary, the team have provided a number of translations. Read the text in German, Dutch, Spanish, French, Icelandic, Italian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Catalan or Polish here . How can we get more from less use of natural resources in … Continue reading Diversity robustly suppresses weeds in intensive grassland systems – with multiple translations