Heathland restoration in The Netherlands: Effects of turf cutting depth on germination of Arnica montana

Berg, Leon J.L. van der; Vergeer, Philippine; Roelofs, J.G.M.

doi:10.1111/j.1654-109x.2003.tb00571.x

Cited by 18 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…It is likely that a number of samples in this study were from non-viable populations that would take the species-specific mean values we found for these variables to suboptimal levels. A range of experimental studies at various sites sampled in this study indicates that the most effective way to reduce both NH 4 concentrations and NH 4 /NO 3 ratios is to apply a combination of turf-cutting and liming (application of CaCO 3 ; De Graaf et al 1998b;Van den Berg, Vergeer & Roelofs 2003;Dorland et al 2005). Turf-cutting removes a significant proportion of the accumulated NH 4 .…”

Section: S Y N T H E S I S a N D A P P L I C A T I O N Smentioning

confidence: 87%

“…Although our study does not rule out adverse effects of other soil variables, it does suggest that NH 4 has an overriding adverse effect on endangered species typical of heathland and acidic nutrient-poor grasslands. It is possible that soil variables other than NH 4 mainly affect plant recruitment (De Graaf et al 1997;Van den Berg, Vergeer & Roelofs 2003) whereas NH 4 affects species at both the juvenile and adult stages. This would result in a gradual decline of populations exposed to, for example, high Al/Ca ratios and a rapid decline of populations exposed to high NH 4 concentrations.…”

Section: S Y N T H E S I S a N D A P P L I C A T I O N Smentioning

confidence: 99%

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In search for key biogeochemical factors affecting plant species persistence in heathland and acidic grasslands: a comparison of common and rare species

Kleijn

Bekker

Bobbink

et al. 2007

Journal of Applied Ecology

103

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Summary 1.During the last century, many plant species typical of heathland and nutrient-poor acidic grasslands have become rare whereas others have remained common. Habitat restoration often fails to enhance the rare species, which may in part be caused by the failure to restore the biogeochemical conditions suited to these species. Many soil variables have been shown to affect plant fitness but it is unknown what their relative importance is and whether any biogeochemical variable acts as a key factor constraining the persistence of rare heathland species. 2. We compiled a data set consisting of 300 vegetation samples and the associated soil chemical properties from a range of studies carried out across the Netherlands. We asked whether growth sites of rare and common species typical of heathland and acidic grasslands differed in their biogeochemical properties, and whether growth sites of rare species displayed less variation in soil biogeochemical variables (e.g. had narrower ecological amplitude). 3. Regardless of rarity, the species' growth sites were most accurately described by a curvilinear relationship between pH and Al/Ca ratios. Other soil characteristics did not vary systematically with changing acidity of the soil or the patterns were less pronounced. Acidification will therefore most rapidly and predictably result in an increase in Al/Ca ratio whereas this is not necessarily the case for the other soil variables affecting plant fitness. 4. The soil ammonium (NH 4 ) concentration and ammonium/nitrate (NH 4 /NO 3 ) ratio were 3·5 and 3 times higher, respectively, in growth sites of common species compared with those of rare species. No other measured variable differed significantly between rare and common plant species. 5. On average rare species had a significantly narrower ecological amplitude than common species for soil biogeochemical parameters. 6. Synthesis and applications . A greater sensitivity to high NH 4 concentrations in combination with a narrower ecological tolerance zone for a range of soil biogeochemical factors may explain the demise of rare species adapted to nutrient-poor acidic habitats in recent decades. Conservation management should aim to restore low NH 4 concentrations and NH 4 /NO 3 ratios. Experimental studies indicate that the most effective way to do this is through removal of the topsoil in combination with liming.

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Section: S Y N T H E S I S a N D A P P L I C A T I O N Smentioning

confidence: 87%

Section: S Y N T H E S I S a N D A P P L I C A T I O N Smentioning

confidence: 99%

In search for key biogeochemical factors affecting plant species persistence in heathland and acidic grasslands: a comparison of common and rare species

Kleijn

Bekker

Bobbink

et al. 2007

Journal of Applied Ecology

103

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Hence, the establishment of the target species depends on the presence of remaining nearby populations and their dispersal capacity (Bekker et al 2000;Grootjans et al 2001;Ozinga et al 2005). Although in some cases a highly diverse vegetation has developed even without species being reintroduced (Tallowin & Smith 2001;, in many cases, additional measures such as the reintroduction of species will deserve serious consideration (Patzelt et al 2001;Pywell et al 2002;Van den Berg et al 2003;Vergeer 2005). Experiment 2 confirms that removing the top layer, resulting in much lower Olsen-P levels in the soil, has a much greater effect on the growth of J. effusus than liming, at least on the middle term.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Liming might then be beneficial to prevent acidification and further enhance P immobilization in the soils. The germination and establishment of the target species might be greatly stimulated by additional liming, as this will prevent ammonium and aluminum toxicity (De Graaf et al 1998;Lucassen et al 2002;Van den Berg et al 2003).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decreasing the Abundance of Juncus effusus on Former Agricultural Lands with Noncalcareous Sandy Soils: Possible Effects of Liming and Soil Removal

Smolders¹,

Lucassen²,

Aalst³

et al. 2007

Restoration Ecology

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More and more agricultural land in the Netherlands is becoming available for ecological restoration projects. However, nutrient levels in the top layer of the soils are high because the agricultural lands have been heavily fertilized for decades. As drainage ditches are no longer maintained when agricultural use ends, the agricultural lands usually become much wetter. As a result, former agricultural soils tend to develop extensive monotonous stands of Juncus effusus, which have little value from an ecological point of view. In this article, we present the results of field measurements/observations and experiments to examine the relationship between nutrient availability and J. effusus growth. In addition, we present and discuss results of experiments to study the potential beneficial effects of liming. Our findings show that the growth of J. effusus on moist or wet soils seems to be strongly determined by the Olsen-P concentration in the soil. The restoration of diverse, species-rich vegetation types on former agricultural lands with a noncalcareous sandy soil will in most cases not be possible within a reasonable time span without topsoil removal. Liming might be a valuable additional measure to enhance the quality of the soil after topsoil removal, and to prevent mobilization of P to groundwater or surface water. If removal of the topsoil is considered to create P limitation, it is important to study P concentrations at various depths to establish the amount of soil that has to be removed.

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“…Even then, topsoil removal can inhibit desired species substantially (Kardol et al 2008). Topsoil removal has numerous other eVects besides lower N availability, including removal of seed banks and soil Xora and fauna (Vergeer et al 2006), and altered soil structure and chemistry (van den Berg et al 2003), which must be considered when deciding whether to use this approach.…”

Section: Topsoil Removalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Immobilizing nitrogen to control plant invasion

Blumenthal²,

et al. 2010

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Increased soil N availability may often facilitate plant invasions. Therefore, lowering N availability might reduce these invasions and favor desired species. Here, we review the potential efficacy of several commonly proposed management approaches for lowering N availability to control invasion, including soil C addition, burning, grazing, topsoil removal, and biomass removal, as well as a less frequently proposed management approach for lowering N availability, establishment of plant species adapted to low N availability. We conclude that many of these approaches may be promising for lowering N availability by stimulating N immobilization, even though most are generally ineffective for removing N from ecosystems (excepting topsoil removal). C addition and topsoil removal are the most reliable approaches for lowering N availability, and often favor desired species over invasive species, but are too expensive or destructive, respectively, for most management applications. Less intensive approaches, such as establishing low-N plant species, burning, grazing and biomass removal, are less expensive than C addition and may lower N availability if they favor plant species that are adapted to low N availability, produce high C:N tissue, and thus stimulate N immobilization. Regardless of the method used, lowering N availability sufficiently to reduce invasion will be difficult, particularly in sites with high atmospheric N deposition or agricultural runoff. Therefore, where feasible, the disturbances that result in high N availability should be limited in order to reduce invasions by nitrophilic weeds.

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Heathland restoration in The Netherlands: Effects of turf cutting depth on germination of Arnica montana

Cited by 18 publications

References 32 publications

In search for key biogeochemical factors affecting plant species persistence in heathland and acidic grasslands: a comparison of common and rare species

In search for key biogeochemical factors affecting plant species persistence in heathland and acidic grasslands: a comparison of common and rare species

Decreasing the Abundance of Juncus effusus on Former Agricultural Lands with Noncalcareous Sandy Soils: Possible Effects of Liming and Soil Removal

Immobilizing nitrogen to control plant invasion

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