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The comprehension of plant biology and the response to the environment is fundamental to achieve the optimal skills to manage and conserve the fine equilibrium between biotic and abiotic parameters regulating natural biodiversity in salt marshes. The behaviour of annuals living in these stressful conditions is poorly understood and constitutes a good model for a better understanding of this relationship. We thus identified the determinant environmental factors involved in population survival of Halopeplis amplexicaulis, a threatened annual species inhabiting salt marshes. To achieve this objective, maternal climatic parameters were analyzed in seeds collected in different years, and correlated to seed dimensions (length, width and length/width ratio) and mass, and also to germination responses of the next generation. Our results proved a direct correlation between seed factors and the maternal environment determining the hydroperiod length, particularly autumn and winter temperatures, responsible of life cycle extent. Population survival is ensured by a narrow adaptation to climatic conditions through a natural halopriming of seeds. The combination of the two complementary germination strategies verified (opportunistic vs. bet-hedging) depending on the climatic conditions of the ripening year, is revealed as a density regulation mechanism controlling seed bank dynamics.

Limonium perplexum Saez and Rossello is an herbaceous—perennial to annual—, triploid apomictic halophyte which only lives on a small outcrop (40 sq. m.) of a low coastal cliff in Serra d’Irta (Peniscola, Castellon, Valencian Community, Spain). The population has been observed to fluctuate between 19 and 383 individuals, and the site is affected by collapse risk caused by marine storms. To save this species, 9 new populations—neopopulations—have been planted close by—0.12 to 7.35 km—, with 4,198 individuals planted throughout 2005–2014. The fluctuation of the native population shows a correlation between the number of individuals and the maximum daily rainfall of the second quarter—April to June. Survival of the founder individuals on available microhabitats fluctuates between 36 and 77 %. New populations show a strong initial decline during the first 2 years, but in that time an initial pool of seeds is generated, which can yield the first recruitment of seedlings. The establishment of new generations is not apparently restricted by seeds, but by the need to grow in safe conditions—mainly on rock crevices holding soil and being protected against the effects of excessive wind and sun radiation. Similarity between the inter-annual changes in censuses of the native population and neopopulations is taken as a measurement of the establishment success. Apparently no former similar works have been published with endangered species of Limonium, although this genus holds more than 400 species.

Phylogenetic diversity enhances ecosystem functioning but restoration ecology has not taken advantage of this knowledge. We propose plant facilitation as a mechanism to promote phylogenetic diversity in restoration practices. We planted three functionally different species (Gypsophila struthium, Sedum album, and Limonium sucronicum) in a degraded gypsum ecosystem in Spain and found that after 7 years, the species with nurse traits (G. struthium) survived longer and facilitated the establishment of new species forming phylogenetically diverse neighborhoods. These facilitation-driven phylodiverse communities may potentially produce a cascade of benefits on ecosystem functioning.

In order to achieve certain targets of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), countries should aim to have at least 75% of their threatened species preserved in ex situ genetically representative collections, preferably in the country of origin, and at least 20% of the threatened species must be available for recovery plans and restoration programs (Target 8). Assessing the conservation value of ex situ collections is needed in order to identify the gaps in gene banks and to determine the baseline situation. Selection of the target species for conservation followed the Regional Responsibility criterion, as the first-order of priority at the local level with highest ranking given to species whose distribution is endemic to the study area. Data analysis was performed on 85 species listed in the Valencian Catalog of Threatened Plant Species (VCTPS) stored in the Germplasm Bank Collections of Valencian Flora, Spain. Our results show that conservation value of an ex situ collection will depend on whether the analysis is based on the representation of species (i.e. the presence or absence of species in an ex situ collection) or based on their representativeness (i.e. how well the collected and stored natural populations represent the “theoretical” species genetic diversity and what is the potential to produce plants for recovery actions, summarized in the proposed index R4). For 85 species listed in VCTPS the existing ex situ seed bank collections keep samples of 91.8% (78 species), indicating good representation. However, the criteria accounting for number of populations collected and quality of the stored germplasm revealed that less than 50% of the listed species are properly preserved in the ex situ collections.

The genus Juniperus Linnaeus (1753: 1038) (Cupressaceae Gray, nom. cons. ) is a major component of arid and semi-arid tree/shrub ecosystems throughout the Northern Hemisphere (Thorne 1972, Adams 2004, 2008, 2014, Farjon 2005). The genus is monophyletic (Adams 2004, 2008, 2014, Little 2006, Mao et al . 2010), and three monophyletic sections are currently recognized: J . sect. Caryocedrus Endlicher (1847: 2) , with one species in the Mediterranean; J . sect. Juniperus, with nine species in East Asia and the Mediterranean plus the circumboreal J. communis Linnaeus (1753: 1040); and J. sect. Sabina Spach (1841: 291), with 56 species distributed in southwestern North America, Asia and the Mediterranean region, with outliers in Africa and the Canary Islands.

The Germplasm Bank of Valencia Wild Flora is a network of collections for conservation of taxa listed in Valencia Catalog Endangered Species of Flora (VCESF). CIEF germplasm collection belongs to Generalitat Valenciana´s Forest Research and Experimentation Centre, and in addition to forest species, seeds of singular plants of VCESF are also preserved by the Wildlife Service team. From 1990 until now, in bank´s installations is preserved 2447 lots from 1445 species. It is conserved germplasm from 92% of the Endangered species and 94% as Vulnerable species according to VCESF. These data indicate that 67,6% of monitoring populations currently known for species listed as Endangered are preserved in the collection and 50% in the case of Vulnerable species. High-density areas of harvesting are the north and northwest of Alicante (dianic area and “Sierra de Aitana”), the southeast quadrant of Valencia (setabense zone), the Valencian coast (“El Saler”, “Sagunto”, etc.), and Castellón (“Islas Columbretes”, “Macizo del Penyagolosa”, “Cabanes”, “Peñiscola”). The aim to short-medium term is to keep up at least one accession of each monitoring population from VCESF species capable to be conserved in a genebank.

The establishment of seed orchards has allowed obtaining a great deal of germoplasm of Silene hifacensis, an endangered endemic Ibero-Balearic species. In four years, 3.958.531 seeds have been collected in our four seed orchards from a total of 570 plants/year per average, including all genetic variability from natural populations of this species in Alicante province (Illot of Mona, the Pessebret, Cova de les Cendres, Morro de Toix).

The positive effect of new legal rules improving the ex situ conservation actions on protected plants is analysed in the Valencian Community (Spain), comparing the data of seed germination tests made by the Valencian Wildlife Service (Servicio de Espacios Naturales y Biodiversidad) on the species strictly protected by a new regional Decree, entering in force in 2009. The amount of tested species after the enforcement of this Decree (years 2009-2011, x=35,000 ± 9,644 species/year) is significantly different (F13,2=0,132 ; p=0,013) than the pre-Decree period (1995-2008, x=6,500 ± 3,503 species/year). If only new species tested are compared -so not considering the data on formerly tested species- the difference between the pre-Decree time (2,286 ± 1,978 new species/year) and the post-Decree period (14,333 ±7,767 new species/year) is also significant (F13,2=0,065 ; p=0,001). Comisión Europea a través de diversos proyectos LIFE y del programa operativo de los fondos FEOGA-Orientación y FEADER en la Comunidad Valenciana.