A systematic review dataset describing the studies of positive interactions and the niche in deserts.

To synthesize the breadth of concepts and approaches used to concurrently study niche and positive plant interactions in deserts, we conducted a formalized systematic review. in early 2018, we conducted a search of the peer-reviewed literature using the Web of Science with the following terms: “niche“ AND (“plant facilitat*” OR “nurse plant” OR “positive interact*) AND (“arid” OR “desert”). After removing duplicates, the following data were extracted to categorize the studies. The code and full list of studies are provided on GitHub: https://cjlortie.github.io/desert.niche.facilitation/