Showcase of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors (SOURCE)

The Impact of Non-Native Plants on Urban Forest Plant Communities

Forests in urban areas are especially prone to invasion because of many human activities that modulate the introduction and spread of non-native species. These non-native plants may be detrimental to urban forest plant communities. However, few studies have assessed the effects of non-native plants on urban forests. Our goal for this study was to determine how non-native plant species impact plant communities. We established 733, 5-m radius plots throughout a 28.3 ha Winthrop Woods located in the city of Rock Hill, SC. In each plot, we identified and quantified the abundance of herbs, lianas, shrubs, and tree species. Non-native species were more abundant than native species in the understory, while non-native species were absent in the overstory. The overall abundance of native species decreased as the abundance of non-native species increased. Also, the abundance of native tree seedlings declined with the increasing abundance of non-native species. Although native trees dominate the current overstory, the reduction of native tree seedlings suggests a potential failure in the regeneration of native canopy trees.