Observations from seedbank studies on Solanum mauritianum Scop. (bugweed) in a pine plantation, South Africa

This study investigated the bugweed (Solanum mauritianum Scop.) seedbank in a mature pine plantation in the midlands of Kwa-Zulu/Natal. Bugweed seeds were found up to 10 cm below the soil but > 90% were not viable. Viable seeds were not found on the soil surface. Seed viability increased with soil depth. Seedlings emerged naturally from soil depths up to 4 cm below the pine litter in a plantation, but under controlled conditions in a greenhouse, seedlings emerged from 8 cm underground. Seasonal seedling survival in timber plantations was low, being greatest where mature bugweed plants were scattered.