Vegetation re‐establishment on land previously subject to control of Pteridium aquilinum by herbicide

Abstract

Abstract. Vegetation development after conventional bracken control with herbicide in the uplands is often slow and rarely results in the development of the target community. Two experiments were established on contrasting sites to investigate cost‐effective methods for the re‐establishment of vegetation dominated by Calluna vulgaris (heather), which is the usual target community seen as the desired replacement for Pteridium aquilinum in the uplands by many land managers. At one site, where grazing intensity was low and shelter was sufficient to prevent rapid Pteridium litter loss, the necessary treatments to establish Calluna were to disturb the litter and add a source of Calluna seeds. A difference between continued Pteridium control or a relaxation of control was not observed over the time‐scale of the experiment. At the second site, where grazing intensity was high and shelter minimal, vegetation dominated by Rumex acetosella had developed on a thin but dense litter layer. To enhance Calluna regeneration it was necessary to prevent sheep grazing, disturb the remaining litter layer and add a source of Calluna propagules. A nurse crop hindered Calluna establishment due to its vigorous growth. At neither site was an initial application of fertilizer an aid to Calluna establishment. It is possible to devise methods for the re‐establishment of Calluna at sites where previous attempts at Pteridium control alone have not had the desired effect on vegetation development. However, the precise choice of methods used is dependent on the grazing management at the site. High levels of livestock grazing prevented Calluna establishment, but some trampling may aid litter breakdown. The ability to adjust stocking rates and access to the site by machinery are critical factors to take into account in producing an effective strategy for long‐term Pteridium control and its replacement by target vegetation.

Competing conservation goals, biodiversity or ecosystem services: Element losses and species recruitment in a managed moorland–bracken model system

“…This was ignored for two reasons, first these inputs are likely to be small in relation to end-of-year inputs, and intensive within-season sampling was not possible within the confines of this experiment. It is also interesting that Galtress (2001) found no evidence of resource change in the bracken litter pools as a result of the control treatments suggesting that litter comminution (Swift et al, 1979) through the passage and operation of machinery (Pakeman et al, 2000b) is the over-riding factor controlling bracken litter decomposition at this site rather than resource quality, which has been shown as an important controlling variable elsewhere (Anderson and Hetherington, 1999;Hector et al, 2000). This conclusion needs to be tested further experimentally.…”

“…The soil is a podzol with a pronounced organic layer and the site is grazed by sheep at a low stocking density, which is a condition of the ESA prescription (ca. 0.5 ha À1 ; Pakeman et al, 2000b).…”

Fast‐growing pioneer tree stands as a rapid and effective strategy for bracken elimination in the Neotropics

“…In the UK, bracken recolonized sites 10 (Pakeman et al . ) to 18 years (Marrs et al . ) after control treatments.…”

Linking restoration to the wider landscape: A study of a bracken control experiment within a upland moorland landscape mosaic in the Peak District, UK

“…Recently sheep grazing has been relatively low under the regime imposed by the ESA prescriptions (ca. 0.5 sheep ha −1 , Pakeman et al, 2000), and parts of the moorland landscape are burned routinely as part of a management program for grouse (Lagopus lagopus).…”