The bamboo Chusquea culeou preempts canopy gaps and blocks Nothofagus regeneration.

Evidence

The lack of gap-phase regeneration of Nothofagus in the upper montane forests is due to the preemption of gaps by these three tree species, which are usually already present as seedlings or root suckers at the time of gap creation, and, more importantly, by the 4- to 9-m-tall bamboo, Chusquea culeou. In most old-growth stands, C. culeou attains a density of at least 5000 culms/ha and occurs in dense patches of hundreds of culms beneath canopy gaps. Given its ability to grow up to 9 m in length in a single vegetative season (Veblen, 1982), C. culeou poses a formidable obstacle to tree regeneration. — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 353

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Synchronous bamboo die-off acts as its own periodic disturbance releasing tree regeneration — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 318; Post-fire bamboo thickets can block Nothofagus regeneration and slow eventual succession — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 318; Rhododendron understories shift gap regeneration toward species that seed onto logs — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 218

Broader Connections

• Rhododendron understories shift gap regeneration toward species that seed onto logs #expands (0.82) — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 218