Abstract: Natural regeneration is a significant ecological process in forest ecosystems and the foundational approach of forest restoration. As two basic modes of natural recruitment of woody species, seed regeneration and sprout regeneration have advantages and disadvantages and complement each other. The early process of forest natural regeneration is the bottleneck of sapling establishment. Thus, it is necessary to compare the early processes of seed and sprout renewal for understanding forest natural regeneration, predicting population/community development, and identifying pathways for forest restoration. Here, we reviewed the ecological significance and influencing factors of tradeoff between two natural regeneration modes of woody species, compared the differences in the characteristics of seed and sprout-origin seedlings, and summarized the effects of biological factors, abiotic factors and interference on the early process of these two regeneration pathways. The main problems in the current research are proposed. In the future, more attention should be paid to the study of early sprout regeneration process, comprehensive research of forest regeneration impact factors and the interference mechanism should be carried out, and the guiding role of forest natural regeneration theory in forest management practice should be highly appreciated, aiming to provide scientific support for promoting natural regeneration and sustainable development of forests.

Key words: seed regeneration, sprout regeneration, tradeoff, biotic factor, abiotic factor, disturbance.