The importance of seed bank knowledge for the restoration of coastal plant communities - a case study of salt marshes and dune slacks at the Belgian coast

Knowledge on seed bank density and species composition is crucial for predicting the probability that target species will establish in the plant community on a restored site. A general overview of data available for plant species occurring in coastal plant communities showed that information on seed persistence is up to now very limited. The available data suggest that restoration of coastal plant communities cannot rely on the seed bank, except for annual species of salt marshes, and that the seed bank is to a large extent composed of species of nutrient rich habitats. This was confirmed by t... Mehr ...