Restoration of Arundinaria gigantea 'Canebrakes'
The goal of our research is to facilitate reestablishing A. gigantea canebrake ecosystems by developing propagation techniques to increase the source of transplant material and a practical restoration. Further, our lab is focussing on field and laboratory studies that will help understand the current distribution and environment of canebrakes, as well as the physiological tolerance of cane to various abiotic factors, especially light, soil moisture and soil nutrients. Objectives to propagate cane include: 1) develop adequate methods for micro- and macro-propagating river cane, and 2) develop an adequate method for transplanting propagated individuals. Objectives toward understanding environmental constraints are to determine: 1) competitive ability, 2) nutritional requirements, 3) moisture levels, and 4) light levels required for river cane establishment, growth and survivorship. Objectives for understanding landscape distribution include: 1) examining historical landscape structure of canebrakes and compare to the current structure and dynamics of A. gigantea stands, and 2) examining environmental parameters of remnant canebrakes.
Saving the Ecosystem Provides Many Ecosystem and Cultural Services
 
Native American Baskets
Buffer between upland land use and streams
Steambank stabilization
  
Saving the Habitat Helps Save the Species that Use the Habitat
Creole Pearly Eye Moth
Bachman's Warbler
Swainson's Warbler
Golden Mouse

Propagation of Arundinaria gigantea

Arundinaria gigantea, river cane, is semelparous (flowers once and then dies). Because it flowers rarely, perhaps every 25+ years, seeds are difficult to find and use for restoration. Many individuals are needed for large-scale restoration of canebrakes, and thus propagation methods to mass produce such individuals is an important step toward the restoration goal. We have begun development of both micropropagation (small node in test tubes) and macropropagation (sections of stems in sand medium on a misting bench). Both propagation techniques require tweeking typically-used plant growth regulators (mainly auxins and cytokinins) to develop shoots and roots from nodes on exiting plants, thus creating a new individual to be eventually planted in the field in a restoration effort. While we have only successfully rpoagated a few individuals in this manner, we are working diligently to develop techniques thtat could be applied throughout the range of A. gigantea. The best success seems to be from collections made in late winter or early spring, when new shoots and new branches are being produced. Collections after June do not seem to develop.

Micropropagation; bamboo shoots Macropropagation on misting bench

Transplanting Rhizomes

Much of the past effort to restore canebrakes utilizes existing individuals, transplanting sections of the rhizome (an underground stem). River cane has a leptomorphic rhizme system, or running system, that spreads fairly long distances sending up new shoots every spring (April and May). Such transplants tend to decrease overall numbers of individuals in the landscape, because survival is never 100% (we seem to have at least 50% from all our transplants), another reason for propagating for large scale restoration. However, this is an immediate source, and it does not kill donating plants. Studies of these transplants focus on what environmental factors affect river cane growth and survivorship after being transplanted. Our research suggests light is extremely important, phosphorus is a limiting factor for growth, and competition does not affect growth (cane is a good competitor).
Planting rhizomes at Strawberry Plains Audubon Center, MS. Two years post planting

Thinning the Forest Canopy

River cane is only partially tolerant of shade. Too much shade and growth of stands decreases. Early explorers suggested cane dominated under forests with widely-spaced trees, much different than the closely packed, closed-canopied forests of the present landscape. The 'brake' part of canebrakes comes from a brake in the forest canopy, the location criver cane was found. An additional observation from the field is that cane stems grow very well under natural canoopy openings. The current distribution of cane are remnant patches sadwiched between agriculture and closed canopy forest. They are not tolerated in the field by farmers, and they can not tolerate the low light conditions under closed canopies. However, remnant stands exist under these canopies, with sparce individuals. One experiment we are trying, but only preliminary thus far, is thinning the canopy to see if the remaining individuals of cane will grow into a thriving canebrake. The canopy is thinned by at least 60%, and measurement of new shoots taken before and after the thinning.

Girdling trees to open the canopy and let in more light for better cane growth Measuring cane diameter
Canebrake Restoration Research Supported by: