Trait‐based approaches have improved our understanding of plant evolution, community
assembly and ecosystem functioning. A major challenge for the upcoming decades is to …

Besides the deposition of storage reserves, seed maturation is characterized by the
acquisition of functional traits including germination, desiccation tolerance, dormancy, and …

Effective seed storage after sourcing (harvesting or purchasing) is critical to restoration
practitioners and native seed producers, as it is key to maintaining seed viability. Inadequate …

Seed persistence is the survival of seeds in the environment once they have reached
maturity. Seed persistence allows a species, population or genotype to survive long after the …

The ability of a seed to germinate and establish a plant at the right time of year is of vital
importance from an ecological and economical point of view. Due to the fragility of these …

Ex situ seed storage underpins global agriculture and food supplies and enables the
conservation of thousands of wild species of plants within national and international …

The alarming current and predicted species extinction rates have galvanized
conservationists in their efforts to avoid future biodiversity losses, but for species extinct in …

Aim Seed traits related to recruitment have direct relevance for plant fitness and persistence.
Trait variation in time and among populations may increase species resilience and …

Advances in plant biotechnology provide new options for collection, multiplication and short-
to long-term conservation of plant biodiversity, using in vitro culture techniques. Significant …

As part of conservation of plant genetic resources, long-term storage of seeds is highly
relevant for genebanks. Here we present a systematic review and a meta-analysis of studies …