This study had as its objective to compare the transposition of the soil seed bank of two successional stages of Seasonal Semideciduous Forest for a Melinis Minutiflora P. Beauv site, in an abandoned pasture of the Mata do Paraíso Forest Reserve, Viçosa, MG. Ten parcels had been placed in each successional site of forest and withdrawals of the center of each parcel sample of 1 m² and 5 cm of superficial depth of soil, being carried afterwards to the abandoned pasture site. Two hundred and thirty one individuals had been registered in the two treatments (initial forest and mature forest), consisting of 31 shrubs and 200 trees. The individuals are distributed by 13 families, 17 kinds and 22 species. The most abundant species had been Vernonia polyanthes, with 108 individuals and Senna multijuga, with 39 individuals. The soil seed bank coming from the site of initial secondary forest (Fi) registered more individuals (120) than the bank coming from the site of the mature forest (Fm), with 111 individuals. The parcels witnesses had been colonized by herbaceous and mainly by the exotic grass Melinis Minutiflora. The number of germinated seeds was only greater in the Fm treatment in the months of july/2008 and january/2009. Significant differences were observed with 1% probability, between the treatments, for the variable wealth of species and density of individuals. The present study showed that it is recommendable and viable to adopt the technique of transposition of the seed bank as a methodology of forest restoration of abandoned pasture.
Seed bank; Nucleation; Forest succession and Recovery of degraded areas
