Perspectives for incorporating biomass from non-intensively managed temperate flood-meadows into farming systems

Donath, Tobias W.; Hölzel, Norbert; Bissels, Stephanie; Otte, Annette

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2004.01.039

Cited by 39 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…An additional increase in biomass production was again connected with a considerable change in plant community from Polygono-Trisetion towards a more productive mesotrophic Arrhenatherion meadow in the D, E and F treatments (Chytrý et al 2009). Based on the current results and results of other studies (Oomes and Mooi 1981;Donath et al 2004;Beltman et al 2007), the typical annual biomass production of Arrhenatherion meadows can be estimated to be 4-9 t ha −1 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

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The Rengen Grassland Experiment: relationship between soil and biomass chemical properties, amount of elements applied, and their uptake

et al. 2010

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The Rengen Grassland Experiment (RGE) was established in the Eifel Mountains (Germany) on a low productive Nardetum in 1941. Since then, the following fertilizer treatments have been applied with a late two-cut system: unfertilized control, Ca, CaN, CaNP, CaNPKCl and CaNPK 2 SO 4 . We aimed to understand how concentrations of macro (N, P, K, Ca and Mg), micro (Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn) and trace (As, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb) elements in the plant biomass were affected by long-term fertilizer application, soil chemical properties and biomass production. In 2008, biomass samples from the first cut (early July) and the second cut (mid-October) were collected and analyzed. The simultaneous application of N, P and K decreased nitrogen concentration in the aboveground biomass, but substantially increased biomass production. Late cutting management decreased forage quality in highly productive more than in low productive plant communities. The concentrations of P and K in the plant biomass were positively related to P and K application and, therefore, to plant available P and K concentrations in the soil. The concentrations of some micro (Fe, Mn and Zn) and trace (As, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb) elements in the plant biomass were negatively correlated with the amount of elements supplied by fertilizers and biomass production, probably because of the dilution effect. Long-term fertilizer application resulted in the accumulation of macro (P, Ca and Mg), micro (Fe and Mn) and trace (As and Cr) elements in the soil, but in many cases this accumulation was not connected with an increase in the concentrations of these elements in the plant biomass. Nutritional status, as indicated by the biomass N:P ratio, was consistent with N or P limitation as indicated by the nitrogen and phosphorus nutrition indices. Furthermore, additional K (co-) limitation was indicated by the N:K and K:P ratios in the biomass from the NP treatment. The results from the RGE indicate that there is no simple positive relationship between the applied elements and their concentrations in the plant biomass.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Furthermore, concentrations of elements in the biomass are relevant to animal nutrition and can determine forage quality (Tallowin and Jefferson 1999;Donath et al 2004). For example, optimal N and P concentrations in forage for dairy cattle range from 19.2 to 25.6 mg kg −1 and from 2.3 to 3.7 mg kg −1 (Whitehead 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Rengen Grassland Experiment: relationship between soil and biomass chemical properties, amount of elements applied, and their uptake

et al. 2010

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“…On the contrary, the correlation between crude protein and crude fiber is quite low (0.10). Normally, when the analysis is carried out on a growing plant at subsequent dates, they are negatively correlated [70]. In this case, however, the grassland was only analyzed at one harvest date and, therefore, it is not possible to find a good correlation among them.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating Plant Traits of Grasslands from UAV-Acquired Hyperspectral Images: A Comparison of Statistical Approaches

Capolupo

Kooistra

Berendonk³

et al. 2015

IJGI

117

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Grassland ecosystems cover around 40% of the entire Earth's surface. Therefore, it is necessary to guarantee good grassland management at field scale in order to improve its conservation and to achieve optimal growth. This study identified the most appropriate statistical strategy, between partial least squares regression (PLSR) and narrow vegetation indices, for estimating the structural and biochemical grassland traits from UAV-acquired hyperspectral images. Moreover, the influence of fertilizers on plant traits for grasslands was analyzed. Hyperspectral data were collected from an experimental field at the farm Haus Riswick, near Kleve in Germany, for two different flight campaigns in May and October. The collected image blocks were geometrically and radiometrically corrected for surface reflectance. Spectral signatures extracted for the plots were adopted to derive grassland traits by computing PLSR and the following narrow vegetation indices: the MERIS Terrestrial Chlorophyll Index (MTCI), the ratio of the Modified Chlorophyll Absorption in Reflectance and Optimized Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (MCARI/OSAVI) modified by Wu, the Rededge Chlorophyll Index (CIred-edge), and the Normalized Difference Red Edge (NDRE). PLSR showed promising results for estimating grassland structural traits and gave less satisfying outcomes for the selected chemical traits (crude ash, crude fiber, crude protein, Na, K, metabolic energy). Established relations are not influenced by the type and the amount of fertilization, while they are affected by the grassland health status. PLSR is found to be the best strategy, among the approaches analyzed in this paper, for exploring structural and biochemical features of grasslands. Using UAV-based hyperspectral sensing allows for the highly detailed assessment of grassland experimental plots.

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“…The impact of grazing livestock on community structure and functioning of grassland ecosystems is a key issue for agricultural management as well as for nature conservation. While farmers are interested in optimizing livestock production, conservationists seek to restore or maintain biodiversity (Donath et al 2004). From the viewpoint of nature conservation, it is thus a major challenge to combine these seemingly divergent interests to create winwin situations by organizing an adequate management for biodiversity conservation that also allows feasible livestock production (Mills et al 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of grazing on seasonal variation of aboveground biomass quality in calcareous grasslands

2011

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Low-intensive grazing is a widely used management tool to conserve the outstanding biodiversity of calcareous grasslands. As conservation management is cost-intensive and often hampered by limited financial resources, combining adequate management for biodiversity conservation with feasible livestock production may be relevant for both conservationists and land managers. However, profound knowledge of the effect of grazing in nonintensively used grasslands on seasonal variation in biomass quality is scarce. We analyzed the floristic composition, abiotic soil properties and the chemical composition of aboveground biomass in a grazed calcareous grassland in NW Germany. Sampling took place in monthly intervals during one growing season. To separate the impact of grazing and nongrazing on biomass quality, an exclosure experiment was performed. Floristic composition of the studied calcareous grasslands was mainly related to two gradients representing the trophic status and the longterm management intensity. Differences in abiotic site conditions were hardly reflected by nutrient concentrations in the biomass. Irrespectively of abiotic site conditions, the chemical composition of the biomass showed a clear seasonal trend. Nutrient concentrations strongly declined from May to July but increased again in August, probably because of favourable current-year weather conditions. Sheep grazing improved biomass quality indicating that grazing modifies the environment beneficially for the animals. We conclude that early spring and late summer grazing is an appropriate management scheme to balance requirements of both feasible livestock production and biodiversity conservation, which is promising for sustainable and long-term conservation management.

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Perspectives for incorporating biomass from non-intensively managed temperate flood-meadows into farming systems

Cited by 39 publications

References 22 publications

The Rengen Grassland Experiment: relationship between soil and biomass chemical properties, amount of elements applied, and their uptake

The Rengen Grassland Experiment: relationship between soil and biomass chemical properties, amount of elements applied, and their uptake

Estimating Plant Traits of Grasslands from UAV-Acquired Hyperspectral Images: A Comparison of Statistical Approaches

Effects of grazing on seasonal variation of aboveground biomass quality in calcareous grasslands

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