Spatial and temporal pattern of Castanopsis fargesii seed rain in evergreen broad-leaved forest in Tiantong National Forest Park of Zhejiang, China

Five mature plants of Castanopsis fargesii population were randomly chosen to study the spatial and temporal pattern of its seed rain in Tiantong National Forest Park, Zhejiang Province in 2003. The duration of seed rain observed from the five samples was about 45 days, from November 3rd to December 16th, with a distinguishable dropping peak between November 18th and 27th. The average seed rain density estimated from the traps deployed under the crown was 112.8 seeds·m^-2, ranging from 70 to 239.5 seeds·m^-2. Of the total acorns collected by seed traps, the viable accounted for 27.3%, the immature 25.7%, the eaten by rodents 5.0%, and the infected by larvae 42.0%. The acorns on the ground mainly distributed under the parent tree crown within 8 m from the trunk, and the spatial pattern of seed density on the ground fitted the quadratic distribution.