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Mulching use in agriculture has been known since 1802 as the practice of spreading dry leaves and straw on the soil to prevent erosion and water loss. Our study evaluated the mulch effectiveness in the establishment of regenerating seedlings and its contribution to the control of exotic grasses. The studies were carried out in an ecological restoration area in the municipality of Itapira-SP. The treatment with mulching consisted in chemical desiccation with glyphosate herbicide application, keeping the dry grass on the ground. In the control treatment, after chemical weeding, the grass was removed with manual mowing, exposing the soil. Eight months after implantation, we sampled all regenerating seedlings in 100 plots of 50 x 50 cm in each treatment. We considered as seedlings all individuals of tree species less than 100 cm tall. We calculated richness, abundance, similarity, and the relationship of the frequency of seedlings to the height of the mulch. We sampled eight species with 42 seedlings, with only one not identified. The highest abundance and species richness were found in the treatment with mulch (n = 34 individuals; eight species), the most abundant being Schinus terebinthifolia Raddi (14 individuals) followed by Solanum mauritianum Scop. (11 individuals), and Platypodium elegans Vog. (three individuals). The presence of exotic grasses was lower in the plots of the mulching (13%) compared to the control treatment (67%). The highest frequency of seedlings was obtained with mulch height from 21 to 37 cm. We suggest that adaptive management practices, such as the use of the mulching technique, can be implemented in ecological restoration areas, because they favor the natural regeneration of native seedlings and can contribute to the control of exotic grasses, but the height of the layer must be controlled.

Mixed tree plantings and natural regeneration are the main restoration approaches for recovering tropical forests worldwide. Despite substantial differences in implementation costs between these methods, little is known regarding how they differ in terms of ecological outcomes, which is key information for guiding decision making and cost-effective restoration planning. Here, we compared the early ecological outcomes of natural regeneration and tree plantations for restoring the Brazilian Atlantic Forest in agricultural landscapes. We assessed and compared vegetation structure and composition in young (7–20 yr old) mixed tree plantings (PL), second-growth tropical forests established on former pastures (SGp), on former Eucalyptus spp. plantations (SGe), and in old-growth reference forests (Ref). We sampled trees with diameter a t breast height (DBH) 1–5 cm (saplings) and trees at DBH > 5 cm (trees) in a total of 32 20 × 45 m plots established in these landscapes. Overall, the ecological outcomes of natural regeneration and restoration plantations were markedly different. SGe forests showed higher abundance of large (DBH > 20 cm) nonnative species, o f which 98% were resprouting Eucalyptus trees, th an SGp and PL, and higher total aboveground biomass; however, aboveground biomass of native species was higher in PL than in SGe. PL forests had lower abundance of native saplings and lianas than both naturally established second-growth forests, and lower proportion of animal dispersed saplings than SGe, probably due to higher isolation from native forest remnants. Rarefied species richness of trees was lower in SGp, intermediate in SGe and Ref and higher in PL, whereas rarefied species richness of saplings was higher in SG than in Ref. Species composition differed considerably among regeneration types. Although these forests are inevitably bound to specific landscape contexts and may present varying outcomes as they develop through longer time frames, the ecological particularities of forests established through different restoration approaches indicate that naturally established forests may not show similar outcomes to mixed tree plantings. The results of this study underscore the importance that restoration decisions need to be based on more robust expectations of outcomes that allow for a better analysis of the cost-effectiveness of different restoration approaches before scaling-up forest restoration in the tropics.

Restoration is considered an effective strategy to accelerate the recovery of biological communities at local scale. However, the effects of restoration actions in the marine ecosystems are still unpredictable.We performed a global analysis of published literature to identify the factors increasing the probability of restoration success in coastal and marine systems. Our results confirm that the majority of active restoration initiatives are still concentrated in the northern hemisphere and that most of information gathered from restoration efforts derives from a relatively small subset of species. The analysis also indicates that many studies are still experimental in nature, covering small spatial and temporal scales. Despite the limits of assessing restoration effectiveness in absence of a standardized definition of success, the context (degree of human impact, ecosystem type, habitat) of where the restoration activity is undertaken is of greater relevance to a successful outcome than how (method) the restoration is carried out. Contrary to expectations, we found that restoration is not necessarily more successful closer to protected areas (PA) and in areas of moderate human impact. This result can be motivated by the limits in assessing the success of interventions and by the tendency of selecting areas in more obvious need of restoration, where the potential of actively restoring a degraded site is more evident. Restoration sites prioritization considering human uses and conservation status present in the region is of vital importance to obtain the intended outcomes and galvanize further actions.

1. Active forest restoration typically involves planting trees over large areas; this practice is costly, however, and establishing homogeneous plantations may favour the recruitment of a particular suite of species and strongly influence the successional trajectory. An alternative approach is to plant nuclei (islands) of trees to simulate the nucleation model of succession and accelerate natural recovery. 2. We evaluated natural tree recruitment over 4 years in a restoration study replicated at eight former pasture sites in the tropical premontane forest zone of southern Costa Rica. At each site, two active restoration strategies were established in 50 × 50 m plots: planting trees throughout, and planting different-sized tree islands (4 × 4, 8 × 8, 12 × 12 m) within the plot. Restoration plots were compared to similar-sized controls undergoing passive restoration. Sites were spread across c. 100 km2 and distributed along a gradient of surrounding forest, allowing us to compare the relative importance of adjacent forest to that of within-site treatment on tree recruitment. 3. Recruitment of animal-dispersed tree species was more than twofold higher in active (μ = 0·45 recruits m-2) as compared to passive restoration; recruitment was equivalent in plantation and island treatments, even though only 20% of the area in island plots was planted originally. The majority of recruits (>90%) represented early successional species (n = 54 species total). 4. Density of animal-dispersed recruits was greater in large (0·80 ± 0·66 m-2) than small (0·28 ± 0·36 m-2) islands and intermediate in medium-sized islands. Seedling recruitment (< 1 m tall) was greater in the interior of islands as compared to plantations, whereas sapling recruitment was similar, suggesting that island interiors may develop greater density of woody recruits as succession proceeds. 5. Surrounding forest cover did not influence density or species richness of recruits among sites, although this factor may become more important over time. 6. Synthesis and applications. Applied nucleation is a promising restoration strategy that can accelerate forest recovery to a similar degree as plantation-style restoration but is more economical. Appropriate island size is on the order of c. 100 m2. Practitioners should consider the methodology as an alternative to large-scale plantings.

1. Tropical dry forests (TDFs) are critically endangered, and their restoration is understudied. Large-scale passive restoration efforts in north-west (NW) Costa Rica have catalysed TDF regeneration but are not effective on degraded Vertisols, where active restoration is necessary due to high content of shrink-swell clays that impede regeneration following degradation. 2. We established a large-scale restoration experiment in degraded former pastures in NW Costa Rica to determine (1) the restoration potential of native TDF tree species on Vertisols, (2) if plant functional traits elucidate mechanisms behind interspecific variability in species performance and (3) if affordable and readily available soil amendments increase seedling survivorship and growth. We planted 1,710 seedlings of 32 native species coupled with five amendments aimed at ameliorating root-zone microclimatic conditions: sand, rice hulls, rice hull ash, hydrogel and unamended controls. For each species, we quantified a suite of resource-acquisition and ecophysiological functional traits, and monitored survival and growth seasonally over 2 years. 3. Interspecific survivorship after 2 years ranged widely (0%-92.5%). Functional traits including wood density, photosynthetic parameters and upregulation of integrated water-use efficiency, explained interspecific variation in survivorship and growth at distinct ontogenetic stages. Easily measured leaf traits, however, were not good predictors of restoration potential. 4. Hydrogel and sand amendments increased initial seedling survival, but after 2 years no differences among treatments were found. 5. Synthesis and applications. We have shown it is possible, albeit challenging, to restore tropical dry forest (TDF) on degraded Vertisols. Our results support the use of functional trait-based screenings to select tree species for restoration projects as tree species with high survivorship and growth in this stressful environment have overlapping ecophysiological functional traits. Furthermore, practitioners should consider water-use and photosynthetic traits when designing initial species mixes for TDF restorations.

Restoring forest ecosystems has become a global priority. Yet, soil dynamics are still poorly assessed among restoration studies and there is a lack of knowledge on how soil is affected by forest restoration process. Here, we compile information on soil dynamics in forest restoration based on soil physical, chemical, and biological attributes in temperate and tropical forest regions. It encompasses 50 scientific papers across 17 different countries and contains 1,469 points of quantitative information of soil attributes between reference (e.g., old-growth forest) and restored ecosystems (e.g., forests in their initial or secondary stage of succession) within the same study. To be selected, studies had to be conducted in forest ecosystems, to include multiple sampling sites (replicates) in both restored and reference ecosystems, and to encompass quantitative data of soil attributes for both reference and restored ecosystems. We recorded in each study the following information: (1) study year, (2) country, (3) forest region (tropical or temperate), (4) latitude, (5) longitude, (6) soil class, (7) past disturbance, (8) restoration strategy (active or passive), (9) restoration age, (10) soil attribute type (physical, chemical, or biological); (11) soil attribute, (12) soil attribute unit, (13) soil sampling (procedures), (14) date of sampling, (15) soil depth sampled, (16) soil analysis, (17) quantitative values of soil attributes for both restored and reference ecosystems, (18) type of variation (standard error of deviation) for both restored and reference ecosystems, and (19) quantitative values of the variation for both restored and reference ecosystems. These were the most common data available in the selected studies. This extensive database on the extent soil physical, chemical, and biological attributes differ between reference and restored ecosystems can fill part of the existing gap on both soil science and forest restoration in terms of (1) which are the critical soil attributes to be monitored during forest restoration? and (2) how do environmental factors affect soil attributes in forest restoration? The data will be made available to the scientific community for further analyses on both soil science and forest restoration. Soil information gaps during the forest restoration process and their general patterns can be addressed using this data set. There are no copyright or proprietary restrictions.

This study examines the landscape changes in two forest restoration areas: one adjacent to remaining forest fragments (AA) and the other non-adjacent (ANA), located in the municipality of Cabo de Santo Agostinho, Pernambuco, Brazil. The areas have been previously used for sugarcane cultivation and have undergone restoration interventions involving planting over 30 native species. The satellite images used were from 2011, 2015, and 2019, allowing for the analysis of changes in vegetation cover and landscape fragmentation. The results indicate that both areas experienced an increase in vegetation cover over time, as evidenced by the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). However, adjacent to forest fragments, the AA area exhibited greater ecological connectivity and less fragmentation, resulting in a large forest fragment from 2015 onwards. On the other hand, the non-adjacent ANA area showed slower progress but managed to form a large fragment by 2019, thanks to the presence of planted species such as Mimosa caesalpiniifolia. Moreover, the analysis of fragmentation metrics revealed a reduction in the division index in both areas, which was more pronounced in AA. The supervised classification of the images indicated changes in the restoration areas and their surroundings, with the expansion of classes such as Forest and Exposed. The results highlight the importance of functional connectivity between forest fragments, especially in areas adjacent to remaining fragments, which can accelerate the restoration process and reduce fragmentation. Active restoration, through planting high-density native species, proved effective in rehabilitating forest cover. This study suggests that forest restoration in anthropized areas can mitigate fragmentation, with effects observable in less than a decade, particularly when connecting existing fragments. These findings underscore the importance of implementing restoration strategies that foster connectivity between forest fragments and of continuously monitoring fragmentation metrics to evaluate the efficacy of restoration actions.

1. Hydromorphological river restoration usually leads to habitat diversification, but the effects on benthic invertebrates, which are frequently used to assess river ecological status, are minor. We compared the effects of river restoration on morphology and benthic invertebrates by investigating 26 pairs of non-restored and restored sections of rivers in Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. 2. Sites were grouped according to (1) region: central Europe vs. southern Europe; (2) river type: mountain vs. lowland rivers; (3) restoration approach: active vs. passive restoration and (4) a combination of these parameters. All sites were sampled according to the same field protocol comprising hydromorphological surveys of river and floodplain mesohabitats, microhabitats at the river bottom and habitat-specific sampling of benthic invertebrates. Restoration effects were compared using Shannon-Wiener Indices (SWIs) of mesohabitats, microhabitats and invertebrate communities. Differences in metric values between non-restored and restored sites were compared for 16 metrics that evaluated hydromorphology and the benthic invertebrate community. 3. Mean SWIs differed for both mesohabitats (1·1 non-restored, 1·7 restored) and microhabitats (1·0 non-restored, 1·3 restored), while SWIs for invertebrate communities were not significantly different (2·4 non-restored, 2·3 restored). Meso- and microhabitat metrics in the restored sections were usually higher compared with the non-restored sections, but the effects on invertebrate metrics were negligible. 4. Measures in southern Europe and mountainous regions yielded larger differences between non-restored and restored sections of rivers. Differences in the meso- and microhabitat metrics were largest for actively restored sections of central European mountain rivers and rivers from southern Europe, followed by passively restored mountain rivers in central Europe. The smallest differences were observed for lowland sites. There was no significant restoration effect on invertebrate metrics in any categories. 5. Synthesis and applications. Restoration measures addressing relatively short river sections (several hundred metres) are successful in terms of improving habitat diversity of the river and its floodplain. Active restoration measures are suitable if short-term changes in hydromorphology are desired. To realize changes in benthic invertebrate community composition, habitat restoration within a small stretch is generally not sufficient. We conclude that restoring habitat on a larger scale, using more comprehensive measures and tackling catchment-wide problems (e.g. water quality, source populations) are required for a recovery of the invertebrate community.

Microclimatic conditions change dramatically as forests age and impose strong filters on community assembly during succession. Light availability is the most limiting environmental factor in tropical wet forest succession; by contrast, water availability is predicted to strongly influence tropical dry forest (TDF) successional dynamics. While mechanisms underlying TDF successional trajectories are not well understood, observational studies have demonstrated that TDF communities transition from being dominated by species with conservative traits to species with acquisitive traits, the opposite of tropical wet forest. Determining how functional traits predict TDF tree species’ responses to changing environmental conditions could elucidate mechanisms underlying tree performance during TDF succession. We implemented a 6-ha restoration experiment on a degraded Vertisol in Costa Rica to determine (1) how TDF tree species with different resource-use strategies performed along a successional gradient and (2) how ecophysiological functional traits correlated with tree performance in simulated successional stages. We used two management treatments to simulate distinct successional stages including: clearing all remnant vegetation (early-succession), or interplanting seedlings with no clearing (mid-succession). We crossed these two management treatments (cleared/interplanted) with two species mixes with different resource-use strategies (acquisitive/conservative) to examine their interaction. Overall seedling survival after 2 yr was low, 15.1–26.4% in the four resource-use-strategy × management-treatment combinations, and did not differ between the management treatments or resource-use-strategy groups. However, seedling growth rates were dramatically higher for all species in the cleared treatment (year 1, 69.1% higher; year 2, 143.3% higher) and defined resource-use strategies had some capacity to explain seedling performance. Overall, ecophysiological traits were better predictors of species’ growth and survival than resource-use strategies defined by leaf and stem traits such as specific leaf area. Moreover, ecophysiological traits related to water use had a stronger influence on seedling performance in the cleared, early-successional treatment, indicating that the influence of microclimatic conditions on tree survival and growth shifts predictably during TDF succession. Our findings suggest that ecophysiological traits should be explicitly considered to understand shifts in TDF functional composition during succession and that using these traits to design species mixes could greatly improve TDFrestoration outcomes.