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Fruit and seed traits and adaptability to rocky desertification mountain of rare tree species Malania oleifera.

LV Shi-hong1*, WEI Chun-qiang1, HUANG Fu-zhao1, HE Yun-lin2, ZENG Dan-juan1, LI Xian-kun1, DENG Zhen-hai3   

  1. (1Guangxi Key Laboratory of Plant Conservation and Restoration Ecology in Karst Terrain, Guangxi Institute of Botany,
    Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and the Chinese Academy Sciences, Guilin 541006, Guangxi, China; 2College of Life Sciences, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, Guangxi, China; 3Yachang Orchids Nature Reserve of Guangxi, Leye 533209, Guangxi, China)
  • Online:2016-01-10 Published:2016-01-10

Abstract: In order to explore the fruit and seed traits and adaptability of Malania oleifera, a rare tree species, to rocky desertification mountain, we investigated the morphology and weight of fruit and seed, seed rate and seed kernel rate of M. oleifera. Reforestation through direct seeding experiment was also conducted in four site types (bare land, grassland, shrub land and open forest land) to evaluate the adaptability of M. oleifera to rocky desertification region in the southwest of Guangxi. The results showed that the average fresh fruit weight of M. oleifera was (21.30±4.25) g and its average height, width, fruit seed rate was (39.31±2.77) mm, (35.19±2.25) mm and 44.21%±3.21%, respectively. The mean weight of fresh seed of M. oleifera was (9.35±1.68) g and its mean height, width and seed kernel rate were (26.12±1.80) mm, (28.61±1.55) mm and 70.43%±4.25%, respectively. There was a positive relationship between seed weight and fruit weight, and between seed kernel rate and single seed weight. The ranking of seed germination rate by direct seeding was shrub land > open forest land > grass land > bare land. The rankings of survival rate, total increments of plant height, total increments of basal diameter for two-year-old seedlings were open forest land > shrub land > grass land > bare land. According to our results, M. oleifera displayed better adaptability in shrub and open forest lands than in grass land and bare lands. Therefore, M. oleifera could be planted by direct seeding in shrub and open forest land rather than in grass land and bare lands in rocky desertification regions, southwest of Guangxi.

Key words: soil, vegetation succession, fine root necromass, fine root biomass