2024 Volume 87 Issue 5 Pages 413-418
The loss of habitat due to the development of housing and the abandonment of management of green spaces has led to a decline in the population of the evergreen perennial herb, Asarum tamaense Makino that grows around Tama Hills. To evaluate the conservation method for A. tamaense, we assigned a “cutting area” in which Pleioblastus chino (Franchet & Savatier) Makino was cut once a year, and a “non-cutting area” with unregulated P. chino, in the secondary forests of Kanto region. A. tamaense was transplanted to four areas with different topographical conditions (valley, south-facing slope, north-facing slope, and mid-slope ridge) in both the cutting and non-cutting zones in the study area. We investigated the above-ground mortality rate, the number of leaves, and the flowering status (flowering rate, the number of flowers, and the number of times flowers set) between 2015 and 2020. The survey results revealed that A. tamaense can grow even under the P. chino forest floor in deciduous broad-leaved forests. However, transplanting A. tamaense under cut P. chino increased the number of leaves per individual; in addition, it increased the flowering rate and number of flowers, especially in the southern slope. Therefore, when transplanting A. tamaense under a deciduous broad-leaved forest, it is preferable to transplant it to an area where P. chino is cut, for increased seed reproduction.
