DOI: 10.5061/dryad.kprr4xhcj
title: Data from: Interacting effects of sand, slugs and jute drive community composition in direct-seeded urban wildflower meadows

description: Aim: Wildflower meadows support biodiversity in urban environments, whilst
 providing low-maintenance, amenity landscapes. By moving from
 international plant palettes to those that include species from threatened
 plant communities in meadows, we can reintroduce native species to urban
 landscapes and help achieve conservation objectives. Adapting
 horticultural techniques from Europe, we determined if such approaches
 could support the germination and establishment of grasses and wildflowers
 from critically endangered plant communities in Melbourne, Australia.
 Location: Royal Park, Parkville, Victoria, Australia Methods: We sowed
 seed of 27 species on soil capped with two depths of sand (10 mm and 80
 mm) and site soil without sand to determine the impact of sand on weed
 emergence, slug grazing and growth of sown species. We quantified weed
 biomass and the time spent weeding unsown species from the emerging
 meadow. We also tested if covering the sites with a jute mesh enhanced
 sown species establishment. We assessed sown species abundance and cover
 six and twelve months after sowing and counted slugs sheltering under
 ceramic roof tiles at twelve months. Results: Twelve months after sowing,
 the percentage cover of sown species did not differ significantly among
 treatments. However, the cover of forb species was greater on plots
 without jute, whereas the cover of grasses was greater on plots with jute.
 Forb density, diversity and species richness were highest on 80 mm sand
 treatments without jute and lowest on 80 mm sand with jute. We attribute
 this to greater competition from grasses and higher slug abundance in the
 presence of jute, leading to the loss of forb species that are more
 palatable to slugs. Greater sand depths significantly reduced the time to
 weed and the biomass of weed species removed from the emerging meadow.
 Synthesis and application: Using low nutrient substrates to cap and bury
 the weed seed bank, irrigation and direct seeding we demonstrate it is
 possible to return plants from threatened grassy ecosystems to urban sites
 in Australia, creating a dense and species-rich native understorey within
 one year whilst reducing labour requirements during meadow establishment.
description: Data was collected between April 2020 and July 2021 using field
 surveys of a direct sown native wildflower meadow in Royal Park in
 Melbourne Australia (37°47<em>'</em>34”S,
 144°57<em>'</em>21”E). Data processing has included
 derivation of summary measures, including species richness (the sum of all
 sown species recorded in each subplot), diversity of the plant community
 (determined by calculating the Shannon index) and percentage cover classes
 (by aggregating percentage cover for each of sown species, unsown species,
 leaf and bare ground). 
description: # Data from: Interacting effects of sand, slugs and jute drive community
 composition in direct-seeded urban wildflower meadows Supplementary data
 files for study “Interacting effects of sand, slugs and jute drive
 community composition in direct-seeded urban wildflower meadows”,
 providing data recorded on weeding time, weed biomass, sown plant
 abundance, cover and species richness as well as substrate characteristics
 as recorded in a designed, direct-seeded wildflower meadow in an urban
 park in Melbourne, Australia. The site was sown in April 2020 and the
 plant community was surveyed twice in the first year of establishment.
 Weed data was collected every second month over the course of this year.
 All files are in .csv format. **final_weed_data.csv**: a matrix of weeding
 times in minutes ("time_mins") and weed dry biomass in grams
 ("weight_g") for six weeding intervals over the first year of
 establishment of a native wildflower meadow. Used to assess difference in
 these variables on each of 54 plots ("Plot.CODE") according to
 the predictor variables jute (presence or absence) and sand depth
 ("Substrate_depth_mm"). Jute presence or absence is indicated in
 column "Surface_treatment_Fabric", where “N” = no jute and “J” =
 jute present. Sand depth is indicated in column
 "Substrate_depth_mm" where “SO” = soil, “S1” = 10 mm sand and
 “S8” = 80 mm sand. **subplotdata.csv**: a matrix of counts by species,
 soil temperature and moisture measurements, percentage cover of vegetation
 by class at a six and 12 month survey following sowing of a native
 wildflower meadow, as well as derived measures, including species
 richness. Data provided are for four surveyed subplots within each of 54
 plots. Individual subplots are identified in column
 "Quadrat_CODE", whilst plots are identified in
 "Plot_CODE".  Six month species counts start with ‘6_’ and 12
 month species counts start with ‘12_’ and species columns indicate the
 first three letters of genus, combined with the first three letters of
 species. Data was used to assess plant community composition by treatment
 at each survey point and to calculate a Bray-Curtis dissimilarity matrix.
 Predictor variables are jute (presence or absence) and sand depth. Jute
 presence or absence is indicated in column "Surface_cover",
 where ‘No jute’ = no jute and ‘Jute’ = jute present. Sand depth is
 indicated in column “Substrate”, where 0 mm = soil, 10 mm = 10 mm sand and
 80 mm = 80 mm sand. **plot level data.csv**: a matrix of counts by
 species, soil temperature and moisture measurements and slug numbers at a
 six and 12 month survey following sowing of a native wildflower meadow, as
 well as derived measures, including species richness. Data provided are
 averages derived from four surveyed subplots within each of 54 plots. Six
 month species counts end in \_6 and 12 month species counts end in \_12
 and species columns indicate the first three letters of genus, combined
 with the first three letters of species. Data was used to assess plant
 community composition by treatment at each survey point. Predictor
 variables are jute (presence or absence) and sand depth. Jute presence or
 absence is indicated in column "Surface_cover", where N = no
 jute and J = jute present. Sand depth is indicated in column
 "Substrate", where “SO” = soil, “S1” = 10 mm sand and “S8” = 80
 mm sand. **cover_data.csv:** a matrix of percentage cover of vegetation on
 subplots by species at a 12 month survey following sowing of a native
 wildflower meadow, as well as derived measures, including the aggregated
 percentage cover of sown species, sown grasses, sown forbs, non-plant
 cover (leaf and bare ground) and weed cover. Data provided are from four
 surveyed subplots within each of 54 plots. Individual subplots are
 identified in column "Quadrat_CODE", whilst plots are identified
 in "Plot_CODE".  Species columns indicate the first three
 letters of genus, combined with the first three letters of species. Data
 was used to assess percentage cover of vegetation types by treatment.
 Predictor variables are jute (presence or absence) and sand depth. Jute
 presence or absence is indicated in column "Surface_cover",
 where N = no jute and J = jute present. Sand depth is indicated in column
 "Substrate", where SO = soil, S1 = 10mm sand and S8 = 80 mm
 sand.