Recreating the eucalypt regeneration niche in degraded bush remnants in production landscapes Tanya Bailey PhD candidate School of Plant Science UTAS Supervisors:Dr Neil Davidson, Dr Dugald Close, Dr Greg Unwin Natural resources and ecosystem services

Funding  Cuthbertson Tasmania Research Scholarship UTAS  Southern NRM priority project: “Addressing Tree Decline” Demonstration sites have been established in eight forest types within the Southern NRM region Follow on from another Southern NRM project: “Developing a Decision Support System to Combat Tree Decline in the Midlands” – 2006  CRC for Forestry Research Program 4: Trees in the Landscape Project 4.2: Biodiversity  Program 4.2.2: Biodiversity outcomes of plantation expansion into agricultural and native forest landscapes

The problem  Lack of eucalypt recruitment is a key factor in the decline of forest remnants in the low rainfall production regions of Tasmania.  More active management of remnants to overcome the barriers to recruitment, encourage regeneration and conserve biodiversity is needed.  Few scientific guidelines for farmers and land managers wishing to restore rural remnants.

Eucalypt recruitment  Eucalypts are keystone species: they provide habitat and microclimate amelioration and prevent soil erosion therefore their decline is important.  The regeneration niche: conditions needed for seed germination and seedling establishment.  Importance of microsite/safe sites  The persistence niche: eucalypts often survive through disturbances as lignotuberous sprouts.  Do the attributes of microsites in which eucalypts establish and persist differ to the forest floor?

Aims  To describe eucalypt regeneration and persistence niches in Midlands Tasmania.  To facilitate eucalypt recruitment within forest remnants in production landscapes by developing methodology for establishing the regeneration and persistence niches in degraded remnants.

Research design  Stand level survey of structural complexity Measuring 13 attributes such as basal area, amount of logs, vegetation cover, species richness and overstorey regeneration at 30 sites ranging in health  Microsite survey Described microsite attributes around seedlings and lignotuberous sprouts compared with general forest floor in 4 recently burnt regenerating remnants  Experimental restoration treatments Factorial experiment at 6 sites using hot burns, cultivation and imported logs around which local eucalypt seedlings were planted and seed sown.  Microsite attribute investigation Elucidating microsite effects especially provision of moisture

Microsite survey  Microsites in which eucalypt seedlings established were distinctly different from the general forest floor. Lignotuberous sprout microsites were not different.  The recruitment microsite was characterised by a greater cover of charcoal and moss with deep mulch and shelter while the surrounding environment had a greater cover of grasses, graminoids, small shrubs and trees. charcoal moss mulch depth soil hardness shelter bare earth grass graminoids solid wood Stress

Results  3 sites: Tom Gibson Reserve and Barton Farm at Epping Forest and Gravelley Ridge Reserve, Campania 80% of seedlings surveyed were in canopy gaps. 93% of seedlings were in ash beds or partial ash beds (which showed evidence of fire such as chunks of charcoal and burnt debris) The majority of seedlings had some form of physical protection with 84.4% of seedlings sheltered by woody debris such as large logs, branches and stumps The average distance of a seedling from protection was 17.5 ± 5 cm The average extent of protection was 225 degrees. The majority of microsites had northerly aspects 4 th site Elderslie Nature Reserve data still being analysed

Experiments  6 sites: 2 Epping Forest, 2 Fingal, 2 Oatlands  16 fenced 5mx5m plots in canopy gaps at each site 8 treated with an intense bonfire burn 8 cultivated with no burn Half of each with 2 large logs placed 60cm apart and oriented east west Eucalyptus amygdalina and E.viminalis seedlings planted around logs and seed sown across western edge

Potential outcomes  Benefits for CRC for Forestry and plantation managers, Southern NRM and farmers  Methods for treating microsites within degraded remnants to: increase successful germination and establishment from seed banks/ seed rain increase successful germination and establishment from added seed increase success of planting seedlings  Financial benefits ensuring greater success rates for revegetation efforts  Biodiversity benefits increasing recruitment of keystone species to replace dying trees and provide habitat emphasises importance of fire and coarse woody debris in remnant health and regeneration