Abstract
The interactions between field layer vascular plants andSphagnum mosses in peat-forming systems are discussed in terms of differences in growth strategies, access to light, acquisition of mineral nutrients and water and the processes involved in the formation of the micro-topographical structures characteristic for these systems.
To keep pace with the vertical growth ofSphagnum, the co-occurring vascular plants require a growth strategy involving continuous movement of the growing point and meristematic tissue upwards and a frequent formation of adventitious roots.
The growth form and architecture of the vascular plants determine the occurrence and distribution of the structural units on a mire, the hummocks, lawns and hollows. Dwarf shrubs and other vascular plants with an orthotropic growth pattern characterise hummocks, where they form a firm matrix which reinforces and supports the spongy biomass ofSphagnum. In a similar way, clonal herbs stabilise the lawns because of the predominantly plagiotropic, or only weakly orthotropic, growth pattern of the rhizomes and coarse roots in the upper, oxic layers.
Extended periods of drought often may have deleterious effects on the mosses but smaller impacts on the vascular plants because of their more efficient water conducting system. Different sources of mineral nutrients are used bySphagnum (atmospheric deposition) and the vascular plants (mineralisation of the organic matter). The presence ofSphagnum, therefore, reduces the supply of nutrient resources to the vascular plants.Sphagnum thereby gains a competitive advantage. A high rate of mineralisation would be beneficial to the vascular plants by increasing their growth rates causing shading of theSphagnum mosses and covering the moss layer by the above-ground litter fall. However, the slow decomposition ofSphagnum litter keeps the system in balance as it will reduce the nutrient supply to the vascular plants.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aerts R., Wallén B. &Malmer N. (1992): Growth-limiting nutrients inSphagnum-dominated bogs subject to low and high atmospheric nitrogen supply. — J. Ecol. 81: 131–140.
Backéus I. (1988): Weather variables as predictors ofSphagnum growth on a bog. — Holarct. Ecol. 11: 146–150.
Backéus I. (1990): Production and depth distribution of fine roots in a boreal open bog. — Ann. Bot. Fenn. 27: 261–265.
Brehm K. (1971): EinSphagnum-Bult als Beispiel einer natürlichen Ionenaustauschersäule. — Beitr. Biol. Pflanzen 47: 287–312.
Brown D.H. (1982): Mineral nutrition. — In:Smith A.J.E. [ed.]: Bryophyte ecology, Chapman and Hall, London, pp. 383–444.
Clymo R.S. (1970): The growth ofSphagnum: methods of measurements. — J. Ecol. 58: 13–49.
Clymo R.S. (1973): The growth ofSphagnum: some effects of environment. — J. Ecol. 61: 849–869.
Clymo R.S. (1984):Sphagnum-dominated peat bogs: a naturally acid ecosystem. — Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B 305: 487–499.
Clymo R.S. (1992): Models of peat growth. — Suo 43: 127–136.
Clymo R.S. &Hayward P.M. (1982): The ecology ofSphagnum. — In:Smith A.J.E. [ed.]: Bryophyte ecology, Chapman and Hall, London, pp. 229–289.
Clymo R.S. &Reddaway E.J.F. (1974): Growth rate ofSphagnum rubellumWils. on Pennine blanket bog. — J. Ecol. 62: 191–196.
Coulson J.C. &Butterfield J. (1978): An investigation of the biotic factors determining the rates of plant decomposition on blanket bog. — J. Ecol. 66: 631–650.
Damman A.W.H. (1979): Geographic patterns in peatland development in eastern North America. — In:Kivinen E., Heikurainen L. &Pakarinen P. [eds.]: Classification of peat and peatlands, Proceedings of the International Peat Society Symposium, Hyytiälä, Finland, International Peat Society, Helsinki, pp. 42–57.
Damman A.W.H. (1986): Hydrology, development, and biogeochemistry of ombrogenous peat bogs with special reference to nutrient relocation in a western Newfoundland bog. — Can. J. Bot. 64: 384–394.
Du Rietz G.E. (1949): Huvudenheter och huvudgränser i svensk myrvegetation (Main units and main limits in Swedish mire vegetation). — Svensk Bot. Tidskr. 43: 274–309.
Du Rietz G.E. (1954): Die Mineralbodenwasserzeigergrenze als Grundlage einer natürlichen Zweigliederung der nord- und mitteleuropäischen Moore. — Vegetatio 5: 571–585.
Ferguson P., Robinson R.N., Press M.C. &Lee J.A. (1984): Element concentrations in fiveSphagnum species in relation to atmospheric pollution. — J. Bryol. 13: 107–114.
Forrest G.I. &Smith R.A.H. (1975): The productivity of a range of blanket bog vegetation types in the northern Pennines. — J. Ecol. 63: 173–202.
Foster D. (1984): Landscape features, vegetation and developmental history of a patterned fen in southeastern Labrador, Canada. — J. Ecol. 72: 115–143.
Gore A.J.P. (1983): Introduction. — In:Gore A.J.P. [ed.]: Mires: swamp, bog, fen and moor. Ecosystems of the World 4A, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 1–33.
Grime J.P. (1979): Plant strategies and vegetation processes. — J. Wiley, Chichester.
Hayward P.M. &Clymo R.S. (1982): Profiles of water content and pore size inSphagnum and peat, and their relation to bog ecology. — Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 215: 299–325.
Hayward P.M. &Clymo R.S. (1983): The growth ofSphagnum: experiments on, and simulations of some effects of light flux and water table depth. — J. Ecol. 71: 845–863.
Heath G.H. &Luckwill L.C. (1938): The rooting systems of heath plants. — J. Ecol. 26: 331–352.
Johnson L.C., Damman A.W.H. &Malmer N. (1990):Sphagnum macrostructure as an indicator of decay and compaction in peat cores from an ombrotrophic South Swedish peat bog. — J. Ecol. 78: 633–647.
Johnson L.C. &Damman A.W.H. (1993): Decay and its regulation inSphagnum peatlands. — Adv. Bryol. 5: 249–296.
Jonasson S. (1989): Implications of leaf longevity, leaf nutrient re-absorption and translocation for the resource economy of five evergreen plant species. — Oikos 56: 121–131.
Jonasson S. &Chapin F.S. III. (1985): Significance of sequential leaf development for nutrient balance of the cotton sedge,Eriophorum vaginatum L. — Oecologia (Berlin) 67: 511–518.
Kivinen E. &Pakarinen P. (1981) Geographical distribution of peat resources and major peatland complex types in the world. — Ann. Acad. Sci. Fennicae Ser. A, III Geol.-Geogr. 132: 1–28.
Lee J.A., Woodin S.J. &Press M.C. (1986): Nitrogen assimilation in an ecological context. — In:Lambers H., Neeteson J.J. &Stulen I. [eds.]: Fundamental, ecological, and agricultural aspects of nitrogen metabolism in higher plants, Martinus Nijhoff Publ., The Hague, pp. 331–346.
Lee J. &Woodin S.J. (1988): Vegetation structure and the interception of acidic deposition by 28 ombrotrophic mires. — In:Verhoeven J.T.A., Heil G.W. &Werger M.J.A. [eds.]: Vegetation structure in relation to carbon and nutrient economy, SPB Academic Publ., The Hague, pp. 137–147.
Lindholm T. &Vasander H. (1990): Production of eight species ofSphagnum at Suurisuo mire, southern Finland. — Ann. Bot. Fenn. 27: 145–157.
Malmer N. (1962a): Studies on mire vegetation in the archaean area of Southwestern Götaland (South Sweden). I. Vegetation and habitat conditions on the -khult mire. — Opera Bot. 7(1): 1–322.
Malmer N. (1962b): Studies on mire vegetation in the archaean area of Southwestern Götland (South Sweden). II. Distribution and seasonal variation in elementary constituents on some mire sites. — Opera Bot. 7(2): 1–67.
Malmer N. (1965): The southern mires. — Acta Phytogeogr. Suec. 50: 150–158.
Malmer N. (1975): Development of bog mires. — In:Hassler A.D. [ed.]: Coupling of land and water systems, Ecol. Studies 10: 85–92.
Malmer N. (1986): Vegetational gradients in relation to environmental conditions in northwestern European mires. — Can. J. Bot. 64: 375–383.
Malmer N. (1988): Patterns in the growth and the accumulation of inorganic constituents in theSphagnum-cover on ombrotrophic bogs in Scandinavia. — Oikos 53: 105–120.
Malmer N. (1992): Processes of acquisition, transport and deposition of inorganic constituents in surface peat layers. — In:Bragg O.M., Hulme P.D., Ingram H.A.P. &Robertson R.A. [eds.]: Peatland ecosystems and man: An impact assessment, International Peat Society, Jyväskylä, pp. 165–174.
Malmer N. (1993): Mineral nutrients in vegetation and surface layers ofSphagnum-dominated peat-forming systems. — Adv. Bryol. 5: 223–248.
Malmer N. &Nihlgård B. (1980): Supply and transport of mineral nutrients in a sub-arctic mire. — In:Sonesson M. [ed.]: Ecology of a subarctic mire, Ecol. Bull. 30: 63–95.
Malmer N. &Holm E. (1984): Variation in the C/N-quotient of peat in relation to decomposition rate and age determination with 210-Pb. — Oikos 43: 171–182.
Malmer N. &Wallén B. (1986): Inorganic elements above and below ground in dwarf shrubs on a subarctic peat bog. — Oikos 46: 200–206.
Malmer N. &Wallén B. (1993): Accumulation and release of organic matter in ombrotrophic bog hummocks — processes and regional variation. — Ecography 16: 193–211.
Malmer N., Vitt D.H. &Horton D.G. (1992): Elemental concentrations in mosses and surface waters of western Canadian mires relative to precipitation chemistry and hydrology. — Ecography 15: 114–128.
Metsävainio K. (1931): Untersuchungen über das Wurzelsystem der Moorpflanzen. — Ann. Bot. Soc. Zool.-Bot. Fenn. Vanamo 1: 1–417.
Murray K. J., Tenhunen J. D. &Kummerow J. (1989): Limitations onSphagnum growth and net primary production in the foothills of the Philip Smith mountains, Alaska. — Oecologia 80: 256–262.
Ohlson M. &Malmer N. (1991): Total nutrient accumulation and seasonal variation in resource allocation in the bog plantRhynchospora alba. — Oikos 58: 100–108.
Ohlson M. &Dahlberg B. (1991): Rate of peat increment in hummock and lawn communities on Swedish mires during the last 150 years. — Oikos 61: 369–378.
Ökland R. H. (1992): Studies in SE Fennoscandian mires: relevance to ecological theory. — J. Veg. Sci. 3: 279–284.
Pakarinen P. (1978): Production and nutrient ecology of threeSphagnum species in southern Finnish raised bogs. — Ann. Bot. Fennici 15: 15–26.
Press M.C., Woodin S.J. &Lee J.A. (1986): The potential importance of an increased atmospheric nitrogen supply to the growth of ombrotrophicSphagnum species. — New Phytol. 103: 45–55.
Reader R.J. &Stewart J.M. (1972): The relationship between net primary production and accumulation for a peatland in southeastern Manitoba. — Ecology 53: 1024–1037.
Rochefort L., Vitt D.H. &Bayley S.E. (1990): Growth, production and decomposition dynamics ofSphagnum under natural and experimentally acidified conditions. — Ecology 71: 1986–2000.
Rosswall T. &Granhall U. (1980): Nitrogen cycling in a subarctic ombrotrophic mire. — In:Sonesson M. [ed.]: Ecology of a subarctic mire, Ecol. Bull. (Stockholm) 30: 209–234.
Rydin H. (1986): Competition and niche separation inSphagnum. — Can. J. Bot. 64: 1817–1824.
Rydin H. (1993): Interspecific competition betweenSphagnum mosses on a raised bog. — Oikos 66: 413–423.
Rydin H. &McDonald J.S. (1985): Tolerance ofSphagnum to water level. — J. Bryol. 13: 571–578.
Rydin H. &Clymo R.S. (1989): Transport of carbon and phosphorus compounds aboutSphagnum. — Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 237: 63–84.
Sjörs H. (1948): Myrvegetation i Bergslagen (Mire vegetation at Bergslagen, Sweden). — Acta Phytogeogr. Suecica 21: 1–299.
Sjörs H. (1950): Regional studies in North Swedish mire vegetation. — Botan. Not. 103: 173–222.
Sjörs H. (1991): Phyto- and necromass above and below ground in a fen. — Holarct. Ecol. 14: 208–218.
Sonesson M., Persson S., Basilier K. &Stenström T.A. (1980): Growth ofSphagnum ripariumÅngstr. in relation to some environmental factors in the Stordalen mire. — In:Sonesson M. [ed.]: Ecology of a subarctic mire, Ecol. Bull. (Stockholm) 30: 191–207.
Svensson G. (1986): Recognition of peat-forming plant communities from the peat deposits in two South Swedish bog complexes. — Vegetatio 66: 95–108.
Svensson G. (1988): Bog development and environmental conditions as shown by the stratigraphy of Store Mosse mire in southern Sweden. — Boreas 17: 89–111.
Tilman D. (1986): The resource ratio hypothesis of succession. — Am. Nat. 125: 827–852.
Titus J.E., Wagner D.J. &Stephens M.D. (1983): Contrasting water relations of photosynthesis for twoSphagnum mosses. — Ecology 64: 1109–1115.
Titus J.E. &Wagner D.J. (1984): Carbon balance for twoSphagnum mosses: water balance resolves a physiological paradox. — Ecology 65: 1765–1774.
Vitt D.H., Horton D.G., Slack N.G. &Malmer N. (1990):Sphagnum-dominated peatlands of the hyperoceanic British Columbia coast: patterns in surface water chemistry and vegetation. — Can. J. For. Res. 20: 696–711.
Wallén B. (1983): Translocation of14C in adventitiously rootingCalluna vulgaris on peat. — Oikos 40: 241–248.
Wallén B. (1986): Above- and below-ground dry mass of the three main vascular plants on hummocks on a subarctic peat bog. — Oikos 46: 51–56.
Wallén B. (1987): Growth pattern and distribution of biomass ofCalluna vulgaris on an ombrotrophic peat bog. — Holarct. Ecol. 10: 73–79.
Wallén B. (1992): Methods for studying below ground production in mire ecosystems. — Suo 43: 155–162.
Wallén B., Falkengren-Grerup U. &Malmer N. (1988): Biomass, productivity, and relative rate of photosynthesis ofSphagnum at different water levels on a South Swedish peat bog. — Holarct. Ecol. 11: 70–76.
Weber C. A. (1902): Über die Vegetation und Entstehung des Hochmoors von Augustumal im Memeldelta. — Verlagsbuchhandlung Paul Parey, Berlin.
Woodin S.J. &Lee J.A. (1987): The fate of some components of acidic deposition in ombrotrophic mires. — Envir. Pollut. 45: 61–72.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Malmer, N., Svensson, B.M. & Wallén, B. Interactions betweenSphagnum mosses and field layer vascular plants in the development of peat-forming systems. Folia geobot. phytotax. 29, 483–496 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02883146
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02883146