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Effect of microhabitat variability on restoration success of swamp willow Salix myrtilloides L. population

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Abstract

Maintaining local populations of rare boreal plant species living at the edge of their geographic ranges is particularly important as the climate continues to warm. In many European countries, their numbers have declined dramatically over the past few decades. In Poland, relict willow species are particularly at risk of extinction, including the swamp willow Salix myrtilloides. During a field experiment to reintroduce S. myrtilloides, 240 seedlings were planted within the quaking bog surrounding Lake Wiejki on the outskirts of the Knyszyńska Forest (northeastern Poland). Five years after the seedlings were introduced into the wild, the size of the population had increased to 272 individuals, probably due to increased vegetative proliferation caused by the browsing by moose. The flowering efficiency of individuals was initially relatively high (40.82%) but decreased almost twofold (24.27%) between 2019 and 2024. Monitoring over five years indicated that the height of the herb layer and the cover of competing species could affect the height of the aboveground shoots of S. myrtilloides. We found a significant statistical relationship between soil water pH and population restoration success, with lower pH promoted vegetative regrowth while limiting flowering.

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Data is provided within the manuscript or supplementary information files.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the support of Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection in Białystok.

Funding

Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (Grant No. WZ/WB-IIŚ/3/2023 to Białystok University of Technology). The study was conducted in full compliance with the ethical codes and legislation of the Republic of Poland.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Forest Sciences, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Białystok University of Technology, Wiejska 45E, 15-351, Białystok, Poland

    Aleksander Kołos & Piotr Banaszuk

  2. Institute of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Białystok University of Technology, Wiejska 45E, 15-351, Białystok, Poland

    Andrzej K. Kamocki

  3. Department of Hydrobiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Białystok, Ciołkowskiego 1J, 15-245, Białystok, Poland

    Adam Więcko

Authors

  1. Aleksander Kołos
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  2. Andrzej K. Kamocki
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  3. Piotr Banaszuk
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  4. Adam Więcko
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Contributions

Conceptualisation: A.K, A.K.K.; Formal analysis: A.K, A.K.K.; Investigation: A.K, A.K.K.; Methodology: A.K, A.K.K., P.B.; Visualisation: A.K, A.K.K., P.B.; Writing—original draft: A.K, A.K.K.; Writing—review and editing: A.K, A.K.K., P.B., A.W. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Aleksander Kołos.

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Kołos, A., Kamocki, A.K., Banaszuk, P. et al. Effect of microhabitat variability on restoration success of swamp willow Salix myrtilloides L. population.
Sci Rep (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-33807-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-33807-9

Keywords

  • Restoration effectiveness
  • Conservation management
  • Glacial relicts
  • Wetland biodiversity
  • Northeastern Poland

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