02610nas a2200205   4500008004100000245011800041210006900159300001500228490000800243520192600251653003302177653001002210653001402220653002602234653002202260100001902282700001702301700002002318856006602338       2011                        eng d00aMycorrhizal suppression alters plant productivity and forb establishment in a grass-dominated prairie restoration0 aMycorrhizal suppression alters plant productivity and forb estab  a1675 -16850 v2123 a<p>A fundamental goal of restoration is the re-establishment of plant diversity representative of native vegetation. However, many prairie restorations or Conservation Reserve Program sites have been seeded with warm-season grasses, leading to grass-dominated, low-diversity restorations not representative of native grasslands. These dominant grasses are strongly mycotrophic, while many subordinate forb species appear to be less dependent on mycorrhizal symbiosis. Therefore, manipulating arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) may be useful in promoting establishment and growth of forb species in grass-dominated prairie restorations. To assess the potential role of mycorrhizae in affecting the productivity and community composition of restored tallgrass prairie, we conducted a 4-year field experiment on an 8-year-old grassland restoration at the Konza Prairie in northeastern Kansas, USA. At the initiation of our study, seeds of 12 forb species varying in degree of mycorrhizal dependence were added to established grass-dominated plots. Replicate plots were treated bi-weekly with a soil drench of fungicide (Topsin-M&reg;) over four growing seasons and compared to non-treated control plots to assess the role of AMF in affecting plant species composition, productivity, leaf tissue quality, and diversity in restored tallgrass prairie. Topsin applications successfully reduced mycorrhizal colonization of grass roots to approximately 60&ndash;80% relative to roots in control plots. Four years of mycorrhizal suppression reduced productivity of the dominant grasses and increased plant species richness and diversity. These results highlight the importance of mycorrhizae as mediators of plant productivity and community dynamics in restored tallgrass prairie and indicate that temporarily suppressing AMF decreases productivity of the dominant C4 grasses and allows for establishment of seeded forb species</p>10aArbuscular mycorrhizal fungi10aforbs10aFungicide10aGrassland restoration10aWarm-season grass1 aMcCain, K.N.S.1 aWilson, G.T.1 aBlair, John, M.  uhttps://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11258-011-9940-002329nas a2200229   4500008004100000245007600041210006900117300001100186490000700197520162000204653002401824653001601848653001401864653003201878653002101910653002001931100001901951700001501970700002001985700001702005856007702022       2010                        eng d00aDominant grasses suppress local diversity in restored tallgrass prairie0 aDominant grasses suppress local diversity in restored tallgrass   a40 -490 v183 a<p>Warm-season (C4) grasses commonly dominate tallgrass prairie restorations, often at the expense of subordinate grasses and forbs that contribute most to diversity in this ecosystem. To assess whether the cover and abundance of dominant grass species constrain plant diversity, we removed 0, 50, or 100% of tillers of two dominant species (Andropogon gerardii or Panicum virgatum) in a 7-year-old prairie restoration. Removing 100% of the most abundant species, A. gerardii, significantly increased light availability, forb productivity, forb cover, species richness, species evenness, and species diversity. Removal of a less abundant but very common species, P. virgatum, did not significantly affect resource availability or the local plant community. We observed no effect of removal treatments on critical belowground resources, including inorganic soil N or soil moisture. Species richness was inversely correlated with total grass productivity and percent grass cover and positively correlated with light availability at the soil surface. These relationships suggest that differential species richness among removal treatments resulted from treatment induced differences in aboveground resources rather than the belowground resources. Selective removal of the dominant species A. gerardii provided an opportunity for seeded forb species to become established leading to an increase in species richness and diversity. Therefore, management practices that target reductions in cover or biomass of the dominant species may enhance diversity in established and grass-dominated mesic grassland restorations.</p>10aAndropogon gerardii10aCompetition10adiversity10amesic grassland restoration10aPanicum virgatum10aspecies removal1 aMcCain, K.N.S.1 aBaer, S.G.1 aBlair, John, M.1 aWilson, G.T.  uhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1526-100X.2010.00669.x