Evaluating the restoration of plant ecological interactions in gypsum mines with species co‐occurrences analyses

Abstract Ecological interactions are a crucial component of biodiversity, and their loss can disrupt ecosystem functions. Therefore, restoring these interactions is essential for effective ecological restoration. Although positive interactions between plants (i.e. plant facilitation) have gained attention in restoration ecology, most research has concentrated on population and community outcomes, with limited focus on the restoration of plant–plant interactions. We used Markov network models to evaluate pairwise and higher‐order plant interactions in gypsum shrublands in southern Spain and compared them with interactions in adjacent areas restored after mining activities. Restoration efforts, involving seed‐based and seedling‐based approaches from 13 years ago, were assessed to determine whether positive (facilitation) and negative (competition) interactions had been restored within each community. Given the stressful conditions of gypsum soils, we hypothesize that facilitation is the main force shaping the interactions in both reference and restored areas. Positive interactions between the most abundant species dominated over negative ones in both natural and restored areas. In both the seed‐based and the seedling‐based restorations, about half of the observed pairwise interactions in the natural area were restored with the same sign. Generally, facilitation interactions that were not restored became neutral, but rarely turned negative. Synthesis and applications . These case studies suggest that both seed‐based and seedling‐based approaches can restore pairwise species interactions to a similar extent. The seedling‐based method, although more expensive, provides immediate visual impact by directly introducing canopy‐forming species into the system. In contrast, the seed‐based approach, which is more cost‐effective, can establish highly dense plant communities, enhancing soil protection, though it may also lead to increased emergent competition through third‐order interactions.