Morphology of native shrub Mulinum spinosum in burned sectors of NW Patagonia grasslands
Keywords:
aerial biomass, annual shoot types, fire, grasslands, Mulinum spinosum, Patagonia, resprout, shoot growthAbstract
The aerial plant morphology of Mulinum spinosum shrubs resprouted at a grassland sector burned four years ago and those of shrubs growing without fires at least during the previous ten years (controls) were compared. The linear shoot extension during the four post- fire years and the number and biomass of shoots, leaves and flowers in the last annual growth layer (UCC) was studied in burned plants and controls. Only during the first post-fire year, the shoots of the burned plants grew more than those of controls. Four years after the fire the burned plants exhibited lower height, basal area, total and UCC volume than control plants. The number and biomass of shoots, leaves and flowers of the UCC were similar in both compared plant groups. During the four years after fire, the burned plants recovered the biomass partitioning of the UCC to similar values than those of plants that did not suffer the fire effects by near ten years. This fast recovery of the aerial plant biomass would explain in part the M. spinosum plant dominance in disturbed areas of NW Patagonia grasslands.
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