Canopy seed bank
Encyclopedia
A canopy seed bank or aerial seed bank is the aggregate of viable seed
stored by a plant
in its canopy. Canopy seed banks occur in plants that postpone seed release for some reason.
It is often associated with serotiny
, the tendency of some plants to store seed in a cone
(e.g. in the genus Pinus) or woody fruits (e.g. in the genus Banksia
), until seed release is triggered by the passage of a wildfire
.
It also occurs in plants that colonise areas of shifting sands such as sand dunes. In such cases, the seed is held in the canopy even if the canopy becomes buried; thus the seed is anchored in place until good germination conditions occur.
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
stored by a plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
in its canopy. Canopy seed banks occur in plants that postpone seed release for some reason.
It is often associated with serotiny
Serotiny
Serotiny is an ecological adaptation exhibited by some seed plants, in which seed release occurs in response to an environmental trigger, rather than spontaneously at seed maturation. The most common and best studied trigger is fire, and the term serotiny is often used to refer to this specific case...
, the tendency of some plants to store seed in a cone
Conifer cone
A cone is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta that contains the reproductive structures. The familiar woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cones, which produce pollen, are usually herbaceous and much less conspicuous even at full maturity...
(e.g. in the genus Pinus) or woody fruits (e.g. in the genus Banksia
Banksia
Banksia is a genus of around 170 species in the plant family Proteaceae. These Australian wildflowers and popular garden plants are easily recognised by their characteristic flower spikes and fruiting "cones" and heads. When it comes to size, banksias range from prostrate woody shrubs to trees up...
), until seed release is triggered by the passage of a wildfire
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
.
It also occurs in plants that colonise areas of shifting sands such as sand dunes. In such cases, the seed is held in the canopy even if the canopy becomes buried; thus the seed is anchored in place until good germination conditions occur.