Liu Yiming, Qi Le, Ren Weibo, Chen Zhe, Yuan Feng, Liu Yaling
Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology, School of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, China.
Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology and the Candidate State Key Laboratory of Ministry of Science and Technology, Hohhot, China.
Sci Rep. 2025 Jul 21;15(1):26373. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-12056-w.
The soil seed bank (SSB) is a potential resource for the aboveground vegetation community (AVC) and plays a crucial role in ecological restoration. Studying the succession of the SSB and AVC at different restoration stages provides valuable insights into their temporal dynamics, facilitates comprehensive investigations of the different restoration stages, and enables appropriate recommendations for the subsequent restoration to be provided. Therefore, the SSB and AVC of restored grassland ecosystems were investigated in open-pit coal mine dumping sites in a typical grassland area of Inner Mongolia. This study was therefore conducted in a typical grassland with the same restoration practices (mixed seeding of Gramineae and Leguminosae), and comparisons were made at different periods post-restoration to determine the pattern of changes in the SSB and AVC over time post-restoration. Through non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS), a correlation analysis, and structural equation model, the changes in the SSB and AVC in the years following restoration were determined. It was found that the SSB density was 475.00 - 705.00 (plant m), and the AVC density was 94 - 192.8 (plant m). Notably, a significant shift occurred 17 years post-restoration, indicating a pivotal stage was reached in the overall trajectory of the SSB and AVC. The vegetation in the restored area was found to be transitioning toward natural grassland, with an increase in the proportion of perennial species and a gradual decrease in annual and biannual species. The density of Gramineae and Leguminosae plants was similar to that of natural grasslands 17 years post-restoration. The presence of the invasive species Salsola collina gradually decreased over time. The relationship between soil physicochemical properties and SSB was relatively weak, while the relationship with AVC was relatively strong. With time post-restoration, the resemblance between the SSB and the plant community slowly diminished at the mining dump. The study provides for the prolonged rehabilitation of open-pit coal mine dumping sites.
土壤种子库（SSB）是地上植被群落（AVC）的潜在资源，在生态恢复中起着关键作用。研究不同恢复阶段土壤种子库和地上植被群落的演替，有助于深入了解它们的时间动态，推动对不同恢复阶段的全面调查，并为后续恢复提供适当建议。因此，在内蒙古典型草原地区的露天煤矿排土场，对恢复草地生态系统的土壤种子库和地上植被群落进行了调查。本研究在采用相同恢复措施（禾本科和豆科混播）的典型草原上进行，并在恢复后的不同时期进行比较，以确定恢复后土壤种子库和地上植被群落随时间的变化模式。通过非度量多维尺度分析（NMDS）、相关性分析和结构方程模型，确定了恢复后几年土壤种子库和地上植被群落的变化情况。结果发现，土壤种子库密度为475.00 - 705.00（株/m²），地上植被群落密度为94 - 192.8（株/m²）。值得注意的是，恢复17年后发生了显著变化，表明土壤种子库和地上植被群落的整体轨迹达到了一个关键阶段。研究发现，恢复区的植被正朝着天然草地转变，多年生物种比例增加，一年生和二年生物种逐渐减少。恢复17年后，禾本科和豆科植物的密度与天然草地相似。入侵物种猪毛菜的存在随着时间的推移逐渐减少。土壤理化性质与土壤种子库的关系相对较弱，而与地上植被群落的关系相对较强。随着恢复时间的推移，排土场土壤种子库与植物群落之间的相似性逐渐降低。该研究为露天煤矿排土场的长期恢复提供了依据。
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