Although crucial for guiding vegetation improvement efforts, soil seed bank (SSB) and extant vegetation (EV) in dry valleys remains poorly understood. A germination method and field surveys were applied to address this problem and investigate the characteristics of SSB and corresponding EV of eight sites across the dry Minjiang River valley in Southwest China. Furthermore, the relationships between SSB and EV were compared to provide guidance for vegetation enhancement. Eight sites were classified into two groups – central and transitional sites that differ according to moisture conditions. Seed density and species richness in SSB were lower in less moist central sites compared with those in more moist transitional sites of the valley as well as the coverage of the community. Moreover, species richness and litter thickness were lower in central sites. Comparing SSB strategies of species from eight sites, transient strategy was the most frequently observed category, followed by short-term persistent and long-term persistent strategies. In terms of both SSB and EV, the most abundant life forms were hemicryptophytes, intermediate phanerophytes, and therophytes, whereas less abundant were chamaephytes and cryptophytes. Low Sorenson’s similarity indices (22–32%) and significantly negative Kendall’s correlation in species composition indicate that species composition of SSB was not closely related to corresponding EV for each of the eight sites. Low seed density, especially the lack of viable dominant shrub seeds, dominant transient SSB strategy species, and low correspondence in species composition between SSB and EV imply that the potential for vegetation enhancement in the dry valley is weak, particularly in less moist central sites. To preserve the good EV of more moist transitional sites and introduce seeds of dominant species to improve poor EV in central sites, EV is likely to be a feasible standard for improving vegetation in dry valleys.
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