The potential of 44 native and non-native tree species for woodland creation on a range of contrasting sites in lowland Britain

A series of species trials were set up to investigate the establishmentand early growth (up to 14 years old) of 44 native and non-nativetree species on a variety of different site types in lowlandBritain. On good quality lowland afforestation sites, Platanusx hispanica (London plane) established and grew more successfullythan the native trees tested, and may be an example of a speciesthat could theoretically be established in anticipation of futureclimate change. Experiments on a variety of community woodlandsites indicated that a range of exotic species, such as X Cupressocyparisleylandii (Leyland cypress), may have the potential for establishinga woodland cover on poorly restored land where few other treeswould grow. However, on less challenging, better restored sites,a wide range of native species also grew successfully. Furtherlong-term and larger scale trials on a wider variety of sitesare required to confirm the potential of the species testedfor British conditions. The results from these experiments alsoshowed that relative growth rates of different species can varythrough time, highlighting the danger in making premature judgementsabout species suitability based solely on very early tree growth.     

Expansion potential of invasive tree plants in ecoregions under climate change scenarios: an assessment of 54 species at a global scale

Climate change may increase expansion risk of invasive tree plants (ITPs) worldwide. Ecoregions are the power conservation tool for the management of ITPs. However, few studies have investigated the relationship between ITP expansion and ecoregions at the global scale under climate change scenarios. Here, we provided a method to evaluate the expansion potential of 54 representative ITPs in ecoregions specifically under influences of the changing climate at the global scale. We found that climate change due to increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) concentration plays a positive role on the expansion of ITPs. We determined two of the most important ecoregion hotspots of ITP expansion potential, such as New Zealand and South Africa. In addition, ITPs were likely to have a large potential to expand in ecoregions of five different biomes, like temperate broadleaf and mixed forests. The potential expansion of ITPs would increase obviously in ecoregions of Boreal Forests/Taiga and Tundra. More importantly, the ecoregions of high elevation belonging to Tropical and Subtropical Coniferous Forests were expected to experience the higher expansion risk in the low GHG concentration scenario. Given our estimates of ITP expansion for ecoregions, management for the prevention and control for ITPs is urgent at the global scale.