Sprouting by semi-arid plants: testing a dichotomy and predictive traits

Abstract

A widely-used description of vegetation response to fire is that species can be clearly classified as sprouters or non-sprouters. We aimed to assess: (1) how well this dichotomous classification (sprouter/non-sprouter) described the responses of a semi-arid flora to experimental disturbance; (2) how similar were sprouting responses to treatments mimicking intense herbivory and fire; (3) how well easily-measured traits could predict sprouting. Sprouting was assessed for 45 species from a range of growth forms (grasses, forbs, sub-shrubs, woody shrubs and trees) from semi-arid south-eastern Australia. We used two treatments: clipping at stem base, and clipping followed by burning with a blowto..