DOI: 10.5061/dryad.sj3tx96bf
title: Data from: Combining the resurrection approach with transplant experiments to investigate adaptation of plant populations to environmental change

description: Recent climatic changes, such as more frequent droughts and heatwaves, can
 lead to rapid evolutionary adaptations in plant populations. Such rapid
 evolution can be investigated using the resurrection approach by comparing
 plants raised from stored ancestral and contemporary seeds from the same
 population. This approach has so far only been used in common garden
 experiments, allowing it to reveal genetic differentiation but not
 adaptation. In this study, we performed a novel approach by testing for
 evolutionary adaptation in natural plant populations using a resurrection
 study in combination with in situ transplantations. We cultivated
 seedlings from ancestors (23–26 years old) and contemporary descendants of
 three perennial species (Melica ciliata, Leontodon
 hispidus and Clinopodium vulgare) from calcareous
 grasslands in the greenhouse and transplanted them back to their
 collection sites. In addition, we sowed seeds of ancestors and descendants
 of two species (L. hispidus and C. vulgare) to the
 collection sites in order to investigate germination rates. In
 transplanted M. ciliata seedlings, we observed lower
 mortality and larger plant size in descendants compared to ancestors. This
 indicates that descendants are better adapted than ancestors to the
 current environmental conditions, which proved to be exceptionally hot and
 dry during the study period. Descendants of C.
 vulgare seedlings tended to be smaller and descendants
 of L. hispidus seedlings produced fewer leaves compared
 to their ancestors in their contemporary environmental conditions.
 In C. vulgare and L. hispidus, we found
 evolution towards faster germination, and especially descendant seeds
 of C. vulgare were better adapted to the unfavourable conditions
 during the experimental period. Concluding, we demonstrate that our novel
 approach to combine resurrection ecology with transplant experiments is a
 promising avenue to rigorously test for evolutionary adaptations in
 changing environments.
description: # Data for "Combining the resurrection approach with transplant
 experiments to investigate adaptation of plant populations to
 environmental change" 
 This is the raw data of a transplant experiment performed within the
 framework of the resurrection approach. We cultivated seedlings from
 ancestors (23–26 years old) and contemporary descendants of three
 perennial species (*Melica ciliata, Leontodon hispidus* and *Clinopodium
 vulgare*) from calcareous grasslands in the greenhouse and transplanted
 them back to their collection sites. In addition, we sowed seeds of
 ancestors and descendants of two species (L. hispidus and C. vulgare) to
 the collection sites in order to investigate germination rates. The plots
 at the transplantation site were divided into 12 blocks for *C. vulgare*
 and *L. hispidus* and into 10 blocks for *M. ciliata* . The blocks were
 1 m × 1.5 m wide and contained 24 individual plants in 4 columns and 6
 rows separated by 25 cm. Plants were distributed among the blocks equally
 according to temporal origin and seed family, but randomized within each
 block. In February 2022, we visited the plots to sow seeds from *C.
 vulgare* and *L. hispidus* in multitrays (9 x 6 pots) with local soil. We
 sowed 10 seeds in 10 replicates for each seed family. ## File list
 Transplants_Data.xlsx Germination_Data.xlsx ## Description of the data and
 file structure * Transplants_Data.xlsx : Measurements of the transplanted
 seedlings. Given are species name, origin (Descendants, Ancestors), seed
 family (i.e., maternal line), Rep (Replicate), Block of transplantation,
 Row within Block, Survival (y or n), Plant size in cm, Rametnumber (only
 for *M. ciliata*), leafnumber, and time of measurement. Please note that
 the measurement in October 2021 was performed before the transplantation
 and therefore, there are no blocks for the measurements which is indicated
 by NA's. Leaf number was only recorded in April 2022. Plant size was
 measured as plant Height for *M. ciliata* and *C. vulgare*, and as rosette
 diameter for *L. hispidus*. Individuals of *C. vulgare* and L. hispidus
 reached 100 % mortality in August 2022, hence, there is no further data
 available. NA's indicate that a trait was not measured (e.g., due to
 mortality or by design). * Germination_Data.xlsx : recording of the amount
 of germinated seeds at the transplantation sites. Given are species name,
 origin (Descendants, Ancestors), seed family (i.e., maternal line), Rep
 (Replicate), Block, Row within the multitray, column within the multitray,
 Seedling# (Number of visible seedlings), time of measurement.