Structure and species diversity of the Prunus discoidea community in Mufu Mountain, Pingjiang, Hunan

This work aimed to investigate the community structure and species diversity of wild Prunus discoidea in Mufu Mountain, Pingjiang, Hunan Province, so as to provide a theoretical basis for the protection, rational development and utilization of wild cherry germplasm resources.

By using the method of a typical sample plot survey, 27 sample plots were set up to investigate the community structure of the wild Prunus discoidea community in Mufu Mountain, Pingjiang, Hunan Province. The species diversity of the Prunus discoidea community was evaluated based on the Gleason richness index, Simpson dominance index, Shannon diversity index and Pielou evenness index.

The species composition of the Prunus discoidea community in Mufu Mountain of Pingjiang consisted of 38 families, 59 genera and 69 species of vascular plants. The flora was dominated by pantropical plants, followed by north temperate plants. The life-form spectrum was mainly composed of phanerophytes, accounting for 72.46%, followed by geophytes, accounting for 11.59%. The vertical structure was the shrub layer and the herb layer. The ground diameter structure of the community was an “inverted J type”, which is the growing type. The dominant species in the shrub layer of the Prunus discoidea community were Prunus discoidea, Loropetalum chinense and Camellia oleifera, and the dominant species in the herb layer were Nephrolepis cordifolia, Miscanthus floridulus and Cyrtomium fortunei. In terms of the species diversity of the Prunus discoidea community, the Gleason richness index was 5.97 in the shrub layer and 2.26 in the herb layer. The Simpson dominance index was 0.90 in the shrub layer and 0.40 in the herb layer. The Shannon diversity index was 2.94 in the shrub layer and 1.06 in the herb layer. The Pielou evenness index was 0.77 in the shrub layer and 0.38 in the herb layer, and the overall species diversity of the shrub layer was higher than that of the herb layer.

The Prunus discoidea community in Mufu Mountain, Pingjiang, Hunan Province is in the early stage of secondary forest evolution, and the community structure is relatively simple. The species diversity of the herb layer is relatively weak. The Prunus discoidea community belongs to a growing community, in order to maintain stability and expand the growth space of the community. It is necessary to take conservation measures such as pruning surrounding trees.