Seedling Density and Mortality Patterns among Elevations in Sedum lanceolatum

Seedling densities, recruitment, and survival of Sedum lanceolatum during the growing season at seven populations between 2257 and 3726 m were studied to assess one aspect of successful sexual reproduction above and below timberline. Seedling densities declined drastically at timberline and above, even when corrections were made for differences in adult densities among populations. Seedlings can be so rare and patchily distributed in the alpine that they could not be detected using random sampling. However, above timberline there were microsites where seedling densities exceeded those at lower elevations and survivorship was homogeneous among most populations. Alpine seedlings can be just as successful as their below-timberline counterparts, depending upon the criteria selected for evaluation of