Free Standard AU & NZ Shipping For All Book Orders Over $80!
Register      Login
The Rangeland Journal The Rangeland Journal Society
Journal of the Australian Rangeland Society
Shopping Cart: ( empty )
You are here: Home > Journals > RJ > RJ09017
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 31(4)

The influence of individual native trees and grazing regime on soil properties and groundcover patterns in a temperate landscape of New South Wales, Australia

Phoebe Barnes A C , Brian R. Wilson A B , Chris Nadolny A B and Ivor Growns B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia.

B Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water, PO Box U221, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: pbarnes@une.edu.au

The Rangeland Journal 31(4) 405-415 https://doi.org/10.1071/RJ09017
Submitted: 12 March 2009  Accepted: 24 August 2009   Published: 27 November 2009

Abstract

Scattered native trees are a significant ecological resource across the agricultural landscape, yet their numbers are declining due to factors such as dieback, senescence and agricultural activity. This study examined the interactions among Eucalyptus melliodora (Cunn. ex Schauer) trees, vegetation composition and selected surface soil chemical properties in grazed and ungrazed paddocks on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. Four farms on granite soils were examined in grazed and ungrazed treatments. Vegetation composition was assessed, and soil samples were collected in plots beneath the canopy and in adjacent open areas in both north and south directions of the tree canopy.

Native grasses dominated the vegetation in both beneath the canopy and open areas, at both grazed and ungrazed sites. However, their composition varied between farms. Several C3 and C4 grasses contributed to the groundcover of the canopy and open sites, but C3 grasses were generally more common under the canopy. Significant differences occurred in soil C, N, P and pH, and vegetation composition between canopy and open areas, and between grazed and ungrazed treatments. Soil P, C and N contents in grazed sites were typically similar to or higher than those in ungrazed sites, and soils were less acid in the ungrazed compared with grazed sites. All soil parameters measured were significantly higher under tree canopies, except P. The tree, soil and vegetation factors were strongly related. This study confirms that individual scattered trees create a distinct mosaic of localised soil improvement, and influence vegetation composition so that paddocks with trees are floristically more diverse than paddocks without trees. The results illustrate the potential benefits of retaining trees for both biodiversity values and livestock production in Australia.

Additional keywords: C3 grasses, C4 grasses, Eucalyptus melliodora, soil C, soil N, soil P, soil pH, vegetation–soil interactions.


Acknowledgements

The authors would like to gratefully acknowledge the various landholders in the Armidale region for allowing access to their land for soil and vegetation sampling. Thanks also to Dr Lachlan Copeland for assistance in plant identification, Dr Darren Ryder and Leopold Bayerlein for their general assistance, and lastly the anonymous reviewers who helped to improve this report.


References


Anderson M. J. (2001) A new method for non-parametric multivariate analysis of variance. Austral Ecology 26, 32–46.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | (accessed 13 August 2009.)

Clarke K. R. (1993) Non-parametric multivariate analysis of changes in community structure. Australian Journal of Ecology 18, 117–143.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Clarke K. R. , and Gorley R. N. (2006). ‘PRIMER v6:User Manual/Tutorial.’ (PRIMER-E: Plymouth.)

Dahlgren R. A., Horwath W. R., Tate K. W., Camping T. J. (2003) Blue oak enhance soil quality in California oak woodlands. California Agriculture 57, 42–47.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Dean W. R. J., Milton S. J., Jeltsch F. (1999) Large trees, fertile islands, and birds in arid savanna. Journal of Arid Environments 41, 61–78.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Eldridge D. J., Freudenberger D. (2005) Ecosystem wicks: woodland trees enhance water infiltration in a fragmented agricultural landscape in eastern Australia. Austral Ecology 30, 336–347.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Eldridge D. J., Wong N. L. (2005) Clumped and isolated trees influence soil nutrient levels in an Australian temperate box woodland. Plant and Soil 270, 331–342.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Facelli J. M., Brock D. J. (2000) Patch dynamics in arid lands: localized effects of Acacia papyrocarpa on soils and vegetation of open woodlands of South Australia. Ecography 23, 479–491.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Facelli J. M., Pickett S. T. A. (1991) Plant litter: its dynamics and effects on plant community structure. Botanical Review 57, 1–32.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Fischer J., Lindenmayer D. B. (2002) The conservation value of paddock trees for birds in a variegated landscape in southern New South Wales. 2. Paddock trees as stepping stones. Biodiversity and Conservation 11, 833–849.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Gibbons P. , and Boak M. (2000). The importance of paddock trees for regional conservation in agricultural landscapes. A discussion paper for consideration by Riverina Highlands Regional Vegetation Committee, New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service, Southern Directorate.

Gibbs L., Reid N., Whalley R. D. B. (1999) Relationships between tree cover and grass dominance in a grazed temperate stringybark (Eucalyptus laevopinea) open-forest. Australian Journal of Botany 47, 49–60.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Graham S., Wilson B. R., Reid N., Jones H. (2004) Scattered paddock trees, litter chemistry, and surface soil properties in pastures of the New England Tablelands, New South Wales. Australian Journal of Soil Research 42, 905–912.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Hurlbert S. H. (1984) Pseudoreplication and the design of ecological field experiments. Ecological Monographs 54, 187–211.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Jackson J., Ash A. J. (1998) Tree–grass relationships in open eucalypt woodlands of north-eastern Australia: influence of trees on pasture productivity, forage quality and species distribution. Agroforestry Systems 40, 159–176.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Jackson J., Ash A. J. (2001) The role of trees in enhancing soil nutrient availability for native perennial grasses in open eucalypt woodlands of north-east Queensland. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 52, 377–386.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Jeddi K., Chaieb M. (2009) Using trees as a restoration tool in Tunisian arid areas: effects on understorey vegetation and soil nutrients. The Rangeland Journal 31, 377–384. open url image1

Jonsson K., Ong C. K., Odongo J. C. W. (1999) Influence of scattered Nere and Karite trees on microclimate, soil fertility and millet yield in Burkina Faso. Experimental Agriculture 35, 39–53.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Kahn L. , Heard B. , and Whalley W. (2003). ‘Pasture Plants of the Slopes and Tablelands of NSW.’ 2nd edn. (University of New England: Armidale, NSW.)

Kaur K., Midmore D. J., Jalota R. K., Ashwath N. (2006) Pasture competition in cleared and uncleared woodlands. Australian Journal of Botany 54, 459–470.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Law B. S., Chidel M., Turner G. (2000) The use by wildlife of paddock trees in farmland. Pacific Conservation Biology 6, 130–143. open url image1

LECO Corporation (2003). Total/organic carbon and nitrogen in soils. Organic Application Note 203-821-165. LECO Corporation: St Joseph, MO.

Lodge G. M. , and Whalley R. D. B. (1989). Native and natural pastures on the Northern Slopes and Tablelands of New South Wales. NSW Agriculture and Fisheries Technical Bulletin No. 35. NSW Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Orange, NSW

MacLeod D. , and Lockwood P. (1997). Soil chemical and physical properties and pasture production. In ‘Pasture Production and Management’. (Eds J. V. Lovett and J. M. Scott.) pp. 52–87. (Reed International Books Australia Pty Ltd.: Melbourne.)

Manning A. D., Fischer J., Lindenmayer D. B. (2006) Scattered trees are keystone structures – Implications for conservation. Biological Conservation 132, 311–321.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

McArdle B. H., Anderson M. J. (2001) Fitting multivariate models to community data: a comment on distance based redundancy analysis. Ecology 82, 290–297. open url image1

Noble A. D. , and Randall P. J. (1998). How trees affect soil. A report for the Rural Industries Research and Development Organisation, Canberra, ACT.

Noble A. D., Randall P. J. (1999) Alkalinity effects of different tree litters incubated in an acid soil of NSW, Australia. Agroforestry Systems 46, 147–160.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

NSW NPWS (National Parks and Wildlife Service) (2004). White box, yellow box, Blakely’s red gum woodland (box–gum woodland). Factsheet identification guidelines for endangered ecological communities, NPWS, NSW.

Oliver I., Pearce S., Greenslade P. J. M., Britton D. (2006) Contribution of paddock trees to the conservation of terrestrial invertebrate biodiversity within grazed native pastures. Austral Ecology 31, 1–12.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Prober S. M., Lunt I. D., Thiele K. R. (2002) Determining reference conditions for management and restoration of temperate grassy woodlands: relationships among trees, topsoils and understorey flora in little grazed remnants. Australian Journal of Botany 50, 687–697.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Rayment G. E. , and Higginson F. R. (1992). ‘Australian Laboratory Handbook of Soil and Water Chemical Methods.’ (Inkata Press: Melbourne.)

Reid N. , and Landsberg J. (2000). Tree decline in agricultural landscapes: what we stand to lose. In ‘Temperate Eucalypt Woodlands in Australia: Biology, Conservation, Management and Restoration’. (Eds R. J. Hobbs and C. J. Yates.) pp. 127–165. (Surrey, Beatty & Sons: Chipping Norton, NSW.)

Sale P. , and Blair G. (1997). Fertilisers and pasture nutrition. In ‘Pasture Production and Management’. (Eds J. V. Lovett and J. M. Scott.) pp. 191–206. (Reed International Books Australia Pty Ltd.: Melbourne.)

Schlesinger W. H., Pilmanis A. M. (1998) Plant–soil interactions in deserts. Biogeography 42, 169–187. open url image1

Smith P. , Wilson B. R. , Nadolny C. , and Lang D. (2000). The ecological role of native vegetation in New South Wales. Native Vegetation Advisory Council of New South Wales, Background Paper No. 2. NVAC, Sydney.

Tunstall B. R., Torsell B. W. R., Robertson R. M., Goodwin W. F. (1981) Vegetation change in a popular box (Eucalyptus populnea) woodland. Effects of tree killing and domestic livestock. Australian Rangeland Journal 3, 123–132.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Wick B., Tiessen H., Menezes R. S. C. (2000) Land quality changes following the conversion of the natural vegetation into silvo-pastoral systems in semi-arid NE Brazil. Plant and Soil 222, 59–70.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Wilson B. R. (2002) Influence of scattered paddock trees on soil surface properties: a study on the Northern Tablelands of NSW. Ecological Management & Restoration 3, 211–219.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Wilson B. R., Growns I., Lemon J. (2007) Scattered native trees and soil patterns in grazing land on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. Australian Journal of Soil Research 45, 199–205.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1










Appendix 1.  List of understorey species and their presence in canopy ungrazed, open ungrazed, canopy grazed or open grazed across all sites (*denotes exotic species)
Click to zoom