Growth of Eucalyptus obliqua regeneration following overstorey removal

The growth of two sources of tree regeneration, true seedlings and lignotuberous sprouts, was studied in a dry sclerophyll Eucalyptus obliqua forest after overstorey removal. Three years after overstorey removal, true seedlings (defined as those that became established after overstorey removal, being plants in which the age of the shoots is the same as that of the lignotuber) were taller, had greater shoot biomass, higher concentrations and larger pools of sugars and starch than lignotuberous sprouts (those that became established before overstorey removal and, thus, having lignotubers that are older than the shoots they support). This suggests that true seedlings are a more vigorous source of regeneration than lignotuberous sprouts in dry sclerophyll forests under certain conditions, and that the importance of both sources of regeneration of dry sclerophyll eucalypt forests needs to be reassessed.