| Intense agricultural and urban land-use has reduced forest cover to 3% in Essex county, southwestern Ontario, Canada. The remaining forest has been degraded by over-grazing, non-native species, recreational use, and, in some cases, poor management. From 1994 to 1996, field studies were conducted in and around Point Pelee National Park (PPNP) with the overall objective of assessing various approaches to habitat restoration.; A preliminary landscape-level analysis of three areas near to PPNP used satellite imagery and geographical information systems (GIS). Forest cover in the area directly north of PPNP (Pelee-north) was less than 3%, while that of nearby Cedar Creek and Pelee Island was 9% and 14%, respectively. The relatively large number of forest patches {dollar}<{dollar}10ha and great inter-patch distances in Pelee-north suggested that the management focus in this area should be on habitat protection. In contrast, restoration efforts might be more effective elsewhere, where land values are lower and possibilities of increasing the connectivity between the forest remnants are greater.; Since the 1960s, cottages and roads in PPNP have been removed and these sites allowed to regenerate (passive restoration). Since 1988, many sites have been actively restored. Although actively-restored sites were still dominated by ruderal non-natives, results suggested that passively restored sites increased in similarity to relatively undisturbed reference sites as time-since restoration increased. After 35 years, some mesic sites seemed to have recovered completely. In addition, there was no overall difference in native diversity between restored and reference sites. However, multivariate analyses showed significant differences in native species composition between reference and restored sites. Spring ephemerals with restricted seed dispersal were highly vulnerable and will likely have to be reintroduced. Non-native species diversity showed a significant decline over time, especially in wet/mesic sites. Ruderal non-natives declined most rapidly as time-since-restoration increased, while regeneration-inhibiting non-natives showed a less rapid decline. The non-native garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) had little longterm effect on the native understorey plant community.; The success of agroforestry and afforestation was examined in a post-agricultural field outside of PPNP. The effects of fertilisation, weed control, and corn shelter treatments on the growth of three native deciduous tree species was studied from 1994 to 1996. Fertiliser significantly increased tree growth, but only when weeds were adequately controlled. Trees in clover treatments had less growth than those in either full-weed or mown-weed treatments, while trees in weed-free and inter-weed treatments had the greatest growth. Silver maple (Acer saccharinum) and green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) growth was greatest under the corn shelter when plots were fertilised and controlled for weeds. In contrast, growth of bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) was adversely affected by the corn.; The restoration of deciduous forest holds great promise for this region, whether it create new natural habitat or accelerate the recovery of existing but degraded habitat. However, this region is so highly fragmented that restoration should be co-ordinated at the landscape level if generations of neglect are to be successfully reversed. |
