XVI International Botanical Congess

Knowledge of the numbers of seeds produced and the numbers that survive to become established seedlings is instrumental to our understanding of the population ecology of a plant species. This review will summarize recent studies and will focus on variation in seed numbers in different situations. In particular, we will assess the numbers of seeds required for effective masting, production of polymorphic seeds, dispersal to a range of microsites, maintenance of persistent seed banks and intermittent germination patterns. The roles of unsuccessful pollination, inadequate parental nutrition, predation, disease and catastrophic changes in climate will also be considered.