- Title
- Investigating the effectiveness of microcatchments at enhancing transplant performance in Nama-Karoo riparian ecosystem restoration
- Creator
- Jackson, Andrew St. John
- Creator
- Wigley, Benjamin
- Creator
- Schumann, Bonnie
- Creator
- Currie, Bianca
- Subject
- Arid regions agriculture
- Subject
- Environmental degradation
- Subject
- Range ecology
- Date Issued
- 2016
- Date
- 2016
- Type
- Thesis
- Type
- Masters
- Type
- MTech
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10948/7469
- Identifier
- vital:21782
- Description
- Globally agricultural rangelands have been subjected to degradation through over-utilization. The loss of productivity of agricultural rangelands around the world has led to the development of methods to restore the productivity of these areas. In South Africa, extensive areas of the Nama-Karoo have been degraded or transformed due in part to unsustainable agricultural activities. The development of restoration methods which are easily implementable and financially viable could increase the probability of stakeholders implementing restoration activities on privately owned land. The removal of the degrading factor is not sufficient to reverse the degradative trend in dryland environments. Active measures must be implemented to arrest the degradation cascade. The climatic conditions of the rangelands of South Africa are limiting to plant performance and the favourable conditions are sporadic. The translocation of plants should be combined with the amelioration of the local conditions. This study tested the restoration technique of microcatchments in association with plant translocation. The effects of microcatchments and planting combinations which were best suited to the survival and performance of the transplants were determined through a field trail. The results showed that microcatchments created microsites which were conducive to transplant survival and growth, including nutrient accumulation and increased soil moisture. The success of the method was dependent on the planting combination used. Plants which are adapted to inundation and the saline conditions of the site performed better. Plants which were older at the time of translocation had higher survival rates than younger transplants. In the conditions of this site, planting adjacent to the microcatchments was necessary to avoid inundation induced mortalities. The environmental conditions of the Nama-Karoo necessitate the coordination of restoration activities with the predicted favourable conditions in order to improve the success of restoration activities.
- Format
- viii, 546 leaves
- Format
- Publisher
- Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
- Publisher
- Faculty of Science
- Language
- English
- Rights
- Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
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