From arable land to species-rich semi-natural grasslands: Succession in abandoned fields in a dry region of central Europe

Sojneková, Martina; Chytrý, Milan

doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2015.01.042

Cited by 82 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Mid forest‐encroachment classes had in general higher woody species richness, although not significantly so. In both semi‐arid Mediterranean systems and Central Europe, total plant species richness shows a peak at early stages of abandonment, mainly due to the importance of the immigration processes, although woody plant richness, in particular, increases over the course of vegetation succession (Bonet & Pausas, ; Sojneková & Chytrý, ). This pattern was not clear in our case, except for shrubs, since the forest encroachment gradient did not directly reflect a temporal gradient since last cultivation (Supporting information Appendix ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies suggest forest expansion in former agricultural fields as means of ecosystem restoration for disturbed sites (e.g. Prach et al., ; Sojneková & Chytrý, ). The establishment of woodlots, hedges, shelter belts and agroforestry systems can accelerate woodland development after abandonment, increase heterogeneity in uniform agricultural landscapes and pastures, and enhance connectivity among forest remnants (Nair, Allen, & Bannister, ; Rey‐Benayas et al., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mid forest-encroachment classes had in general higher woody species richness, although not significantly so. In both semi-arid Mediterranean systems and Central Europe, total plant species richness shows a peak at early stages of abandonment, mainly due to the importance of the immigration processes, although woody plant richness, in particular, increases over the course of vegetation succession (Bonet & Pausas, 2004;Sojneková & Chytrý, 2015).…”

Section: Woody Species Richnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies suggest forest expansion in former agricultural fields as means of ecosystem restoration for disturbed sites (e.g. Prach et al, 2014;Sojneková & Chytrý, 2015).…”

Section: Implications For Biodiversity Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Vegetation patterns along agricultural land abandonment in the Balkans

Zakkak

Radović

Panitsa

et al. 2018

J Vegetation Science

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Question What are the woody vegetation encroachment patterns after agricultural land abandonment? Focusing on two parameters, woody plant species richness and vertical vegetation heterogeneity (number of different vegetation strata and their relative cover) we investigated: (a) the effect of forest encroachment following land abandonment; (b) the comparative importance of forest encroachment vis‐a‐vis topographic and climatic parameters, and finally; (c) the ecological importance of eight land‐cover types encountered in abandoned agricultural landscapes. Location The Balkan Peninsula (Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece). Methods We set up a standard methodology for 1 × 1 km site selection (70 sites) and data collection within 497 plots, along a well‐defined forest encroachment gradient that reflects land abandonment in terms of woody vegetation cover. Results The pattern that emerged was neither clear nor common for the Balkan region, regarding the effect of forest encroachment on the woody plant species richness in young forests, formed from 20 to 50 years after land abandonment. However, at national level, species diversity was significantly affected by elevation (Bulgaria and Croatia) and temperature (Croatia), with lower and cooler areas being richer. Elevation was of great importance in determining vertical vegetation heterogeneity. Woodlots, broad‐leaved forests, hedges and shrublands held the highest woody species richness in comparison to the more open land‐cover types, and vertical vegetation heterogeneity was higher in open forests and woodlots. Conclusions We expect the expansion of broad‐leaved forests following land abandonment to enhance woody species richness. However, other land‐cover types that were found to be important for woody plants should be maintained. As woody plants play a key role in supporting overall biodiversity, by providing suitable habitat for many species, we consider the preservation of a mosaic of patches of different land‐cover types essential for the conservation of both plant and animal species diversity. Young forests should be preserved at intermediate stages of succession, through intermediate disturbance activities, including medium intensity grazing and the enhancement of wild ungulates.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Woody Species Richnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies suggest forest expansion in former agricultural fields as means of ecosystem restoration for disturbed sites (e.g. Prach et al, 2014;Sojneková & Chytrý, 2015).…”

Section: Implications For Biodiversity Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Vegetation patterns along agricultural land abandonment in the Balkans

Zakkak

Radović

Panitsa

et al. 2018

J Vegetation Science

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“…Therefore, the change of vegetation and in addition land use has substantial influence on soil properties, mainly soil biodiversity (Gajić, 2013;Sojneková and Chytrý, 2015;Szombathová, 2010), its biological activity (Augusto et al, 2002) and quantitative and qualitative parameters of soil organic matter (Jonczak, 2013;2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil organic matter quantity and quality of land transformed from arable to forest

Polláková¹,

Jończak²,

Szlováková³

et al. 2016

JCEA

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Comparative studies on quantitative and qualitative characteristics of soil organic matter were studied in arable and afforested in 1964 Stagni-Haplic Luvisol in Arboretum Mlyňany (Slovakia). The studies were conducted at three stands -arable soil located next to Arboretum (control), under thuja trees (Thuja orientalis L.) and under junipers (Juniperus Chinensis L.). Results of the studies showed, that in A horizons, 50 years of thuja and juniper trees growing on formerly arable land, had resulted to the significant (by 69% under thuja and by 126% under juniper) increase of total organic carbon (C ox ) compared to control arable land. KMnO 4 oxidisable carbon (C L ) and mainly hot water-soluble carbon (C hwd ) had higher contents in soil under studied trees than on arable land. The conversion of cropland to forest led to lowering of soil organic matter quality, assessed as the ratio of total carbon and nitrogen (C ox /N T ), which was in arable soil 10.2, under thuja trees 13.9 and under junipers 12.0. Surprisingly, the quality of humus between examined sites differed only minimally, since the change of humus quality is a long term process. (Juniperus Chinensis L.) boli porovnané s pôdou, ktorá zostala ornou, nachádzala sa hneď vedľa Arboréta a predstavovala kontrolné stanovište. Bolo zistené, že vplyvom výsadby tují a borievok na ornej pôde došlo za 50 rokov v A horizontoch k preukaznému zvýšeniu celkového obsahu organického uhlíka (o 69% pod tujami a o 126% pod borievkami) v porovnaní s kontrolnou ornou pôdou. Obsah organického uhlíka oxidovateľného s KMnO 4 (C L ), no najmä obsah v horúcej vode rozpustného uhlíka (C hwd ) bol vyšší v pôde pod skúmanými drevinami v porovnaní s ornou pôdou. Premenou ornej pôdy na lesnú došlo ku zníženiu kvality pôdnej organickej hmoty, určenej ako pomer celkového uhlíka a dusíka (C ox /N T ), ktorý mal v ornej pôde hodnotu 10,2, pod tujami 13,9 a pod borievkami 12,0. Kvalita humusu sa medzi skúmanými stanovišťami líšila minimálne, nakoľko zmena kvality humusu je dlhodobý proces. Premenou ornej pôdy na lesnú došlo ku zníženiu kvality pôdnej organickej hmoty, určenej ako pomer celkového uhlíka a dusíka (C ox /N T ), ktorý mal v ornej pôde hodnotu 10,2, pod tujami 13,9 a pod borievkami 12,0. V labilných formách uhlíka a dusíka boli rozdiely ešte výraznejšie. Prekvapivo, kvalita humusu skúmaná ako pomerné zastúpenie humínových kyselín a fulvokyselín bola nepatrne vyššia pod porastmi stromov, keď pomer v pôde pod borievkami bol 0,78 a pod tujami 0,65, kým v ornej pôde 0,63. Farebné koeficienty humusových látok aj humínových kyselín potvrdili vyššiu kvalitu humusu len pod tujami.Celkovo, vplyvom výsadby tují a borievok na ornej pôde došlo už v priebehu 50 rokov v A horizontoch ku značnému zvýšeniu celkového obsahu organickej hmoty a najmä jej labilných foriem a zároveň ku zníženiu kvality pôdnej organickej hmoty -čo je typické pre lesné ekosystémy v porovnaní s agroekosystémami. Na druhej strane, kvalita humusu sa medzi skúmanými stanovišťami líšila minimálne, nakoľko zmena k...

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Temporal heterogeneity has no effect on the direction of succession in abandoned croplands in a semiarid area of northwest China

Chang

Chen

et al. 2020

Land Degrad Dev

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Space for time substitution has been widely used in the study of succession in abandoned croplands worldwide but it is often accompanied by time heterogeneity. However, the effect of temporal heterogeneity on succession dynamics over decades is not well understood. Here, we studied croplands with the same history that were abandoned in 1998in , 1999in , and 2000 and continuously monitored for vegetation characteristics for 10 years. Aboveground biomass, taxonomic, and functional diversity were compared in the three cropland groups over time. Our results showed that the direction of succession in the three cropland groups was similar, from a community with single dominant species with higher aboveground biomass to a community with multiple dominant species with lower aboveground biomass. Taxonomic and functional diversity increased rapidly in the first 5-6 years, followed by slow increase, decrease, or stabilization. In years 1-5, aboveground biomass, taxonomic, and functional diversity were affected by rainfall, time of abandonment, time since abandonment, or their interactions. However, in years 6-10, biomass was only affected by rainfall, and functional evenness was affected by rainfall and time since abandonment; there was no time of abandonment effect. We conclude that temporal heterogeneity can initially affect the succession process but has no effect on the direction of community succession in the longer term. Our findings provide evidence for using space for time substitution with temporal heterogeneity to study succession in abandoned croplands in semiarid areas.

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From arable land to species-rich semi-natural grasslands: Succession in abandoned fields in a dry region of central Europe

Cited by 82 publications

References 54 publications

Vegetation patterns along agricultural land abandonment in the Balkans

Vegetation patterns along agricultural land abandonment in the Balkans

Soil organic matter quantity and quality of land transformed from arable to forest

Temporal heterogeneity has no effect on the direction of succession in abandoned croplands in a semiarid area of northwest China

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