Ecological Investigation onDiversity of Standing and Seed Bank Vegetation along the bank of Kali River in its Meerut segment

Year : 2024 | Volume :10 | Issue : 01 | Page : –
By

Rup Narayan

  1. Professor Research Laboratory, Department of Botany, Ch. Charan Singh University, Meerut – 250004 Meerut India

Abstract

Soil seed banks serve as reservoirs of seeds for subsequent regeneration of plants. Soil seed banks were investigated along the Kali river bank (KRB) in Meerut region of Uttar Pradesh. The study aimed at examining species richness and diversity, determining seed densities, assessing the spatial distribution of seeds in the soil and comparing the similarity in species composition between the standing vegetation and soil seed bank. A total of 33 plant species were identified in the top 15 cm soil layers with density of 1558 seeds/ m2. Herbs, climber and woody plants were represented by 1547, 7 and 4 seed/m2 species respectively, in 20 families and 31 genera. The diversity and evenness of the soil seed bank in the KRB was 3.16 and 0.90, respectively. Top Five plant species were identified from the soil seed bank, namely Parthenium hysterophorus L., Chenopodium album L. Phalaris minor Retz, Megathyrsus maximus (Jacq.) B.K. Simon & S.W.L. Jacobs, Amaranthus viridis L. The overall horizontal distribution of seeds varied among sampling quadrats while the vertical distribution of seeds exhibited the highest densities occurring in the upper layer (0-5 cm) of the soil and gradually decreasing densities with increasing depth. Parthenium hysterophorus found in all layer while others varied, the nativity as well as exotic species also decrease. The similarity in species composition between the soil seed bank flora and standing vegetation was low (27%). The results demonstrated that herbaceous species in KRB store quantities of seeds in the soil and most of the woody species do not accumulate more seeds in the soil suggests that their regeneration from seeds would be unlikely if mature individuals disappeared (die or are harvested). Because of its diverse seed banks, the herbaceous flora would have a better chance of re-establishing in the event of anthropogenic or natural disturbances. Therefore, the future of the KRB flora seems to depend on the successful conservation of the standing vegetation

Keywords: Soil seed bank, Kali River, similarity, diversity, regeneration

[This article belongs to International Journal of Plant Biotechnology(ijpb)]

How to cite this article: Rup Narayan. Ecological Investigation onDiversity of Standing and Seed Bank Vegetation along the bank of Kali River in its Meerut segment. International Journal of Plant Biotechnology. 2024; 10(01):-.
How to cite this URL: Rup Narayan. Ecological Investigation onDiversity of Standing and Seed Bank Vegetation along the bank of Kali River in its Meerut segment. International Journal of Plant Biotechnology. 2024; 10(01):-. Available from: https://journals.stmjournals.com/ijpb/article=2024/view=152157

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Regular Issue Subscription Original Research
Volume 10
Issue 01
Received June 10, 2024
Accepted June 18, 2024
Published June 26, 2024
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