Forest list archive: msg00198

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Re: Eucalyptus and ground vegetation



Pn Friday, May 30, 1997 5:48 AM Thor Hjarsen wrote, re: Bolivian Andes:

> On the concerned slide you see lush bush and herb layer to the right,
where
> there are NO eucalyptus while nothing can be seen below the trees! I
admit
> that the resolution is bad and that I do not know what is outside the
frame,
> but somehow there is a sharp border in the bush- and herb vegetation.
> Any explanations?

There are many possibilities, two of the most likely being shade and
competition for water. One thing I noticed in the slide show was heavy
grazing (by llammas?). This is probably the  most important cause of
deforestation in the world, effecting a larger land base than even
cultivation of crops.

As I mentioned before, when water is not limiting there can be a very lush
understory and herb component beneath Eucalypt spp. Their allelopathy,
while certainly present in some species, has been exaggerated in popular
literature.
Cheers


Patrick Moore, Greenspirit
4068 West 32nd Avenue
Vancouver, BC, CANADA
V6S 1Z6
e-mail pmoore@rogers.wave.ca
604-221-1990 ph.
604-221-1990 fax
web http://www.greenspirit.com
May the Forest be With You
visit http://www.forest.org




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