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Species dispersal, establishment, and assembly are crucial stages of the life history of plants, and clear understanding of the governing forces and rules that shape species composition in a particular community is vital for successful ecological restoration. In this article, we focus on five aspects of seed dispersal and plant establishment, which should be considered during habitat restoration actions. In the first two sections, we discuss the success of spontaneous dispersal and establishment on restoration based on either spatial dispersal or local seed banks. In the third section, we assess the possibilities of species introduction and assisted dispersal. In the fourth section, we introduce some possibilities for the improvement of establishment success of spontaneously dispersed or introduced species. Finally, we highlight issues influencing long‐term persistence and sustainability of restored habitats, related to the alteration of management type and intensity, climate change, and spread of non‐native species. With the present article, we introduce the special issue entitled “Seed dispersal and soil seed banks – promising sources for ecological restoration” containing 15 papers by 62 authors from 10 countries arranged in the abovementioned five topics.

In the era of ongoing global change, it is highly important that restoration efforts lead to functioning, self-sustainable ecosystems that are resilient to disturbance and resistant to environmental changes. Therefore, it is necessary that restoration aims at achieving high genetic diversity of plant populations in addition to the recovery of characteristic species composition and diversity. Nevertheless, species- and gene-level biodiversity are rarely examined together in the context of restoration, although high genetic diversity of plant populations is a fundamental factor ensuring long-term success of restoration. Landscape-scale dispersal is the key process linked to the recovery of vegetation and maintaining both species and genetic diversity following restoration. In fragmented landscapes, dispersal of seeds and genetic material is often disrupted, leading to failure in spontaneous recovery of species richness as well as in establishment and maintenance of genetically diverse populations. Here, we review the linkages between landscape-scale dispersal of plants and the recovery of species richness and genetic diversity of plants during habitat restoration. We propose recommendations for restoration planners and practitioners to consider while aiming to restore self-sustainable ecosystems with high species- and gene-level biodiversity.