The conservation management of mesotrophic (meadow) grassland in northern England. 1. Effects of grazing, cutting date and fertilizer on the vegetation of a traditionally managed sward

Smith, Roger S.; Buckingham, Herbert; Bullard, Michael J.; Shiel, R. S.; Younger, A.

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2494.1996.tb02063.x

Cited by 49 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Consistently with this pattern, mineral fertilization led to a significant 12% to 21% reduction in number of plant species in mesotrophic grasslands of northern England (Smith et al, 1996a). Mineral fertilization reduced the cover of relatively stress-tolerant grasses (Anthoxanthum odoratum, C. cristatus) and small-stature Bellis perennis and Plantago lanceolata, whereas benefiting competitive H. lanatus and P. trivialis.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 59%

How do sheep affect plant communities and arthropod populations in temperate grasslands?

Scohier

Dumont

2012

Animal

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Grasslands being used in sheep farming systems are managed under a variety of agricultural production, recreational and conservational objectives. Although sheep grazing is rarely considered the best method for delivering conservation objectives in seminatural temperate grasslands, the literature does not provide unequivocal evidence on the impact of sheep grazing on pasture biodiversity. Our aim was therefore to review evidence of the impacts of stocking rate, grazing period and soil fertility on plant communities and arthropod populations in both mesotrophic grasslands typical of agriculturally improved areas and in native plant communities. We therefore conducted a literature search of articles published up to the end of the year 2010 using 'sheep' and 'grazing' as keywords, together with variables describing grassland management, plant community structure or arthropod taxa. The filtering process led to the selection of 48 articles, with 42 included in the stocking rate dataset, 9 in the grazing period dataset and 10 in the soil fertility dataset. The meta-analysis did not reveal any significant trends for plant species richness or plant community evenness along a wide stocking rate gradient. However, we found frequent shifts in functional groups or plant species abundance that could be explained by the functional properties of the plants in the community. The meta-analysis confirmed that increasing soil fertility decreased plant species richness. Despite the very limited dataset, plant species richness was significantly greater in autumn-grazed pastures than in ungrazed areas, which suggests that choosing an appropriate grazing period would be a promising option for preserving biodiversity in sheep farming systems. Qualitative review indicated that low grazing intensity had positive effects on Orthoptera, Hemiptera (especially phytophagous Auchenorrhyncha) and, despite a diverse range of feeding strategies, for the species richness of Coleoptera. Lepidoptera, which were favoured by more abundant flowering plants, also benefited from low grazing intensities. Spider abundance and species richness were higher in ungrazed than in grazed pastures. In contrast, there are insufficient published studies to draw any firm conclusions on the benefits of late grazing or stopping fertilization on insect diversity, and no grounds for including any of this information in decision support tools at this stage.Keywords: biodiversity, grazing period, insect, stocking rate, soil fertility ImplicationsThere is a general trend toward a gradual intensification of ruminant production to meet the increasing demand for livestock products (Bouwman et al., 2005), which logically raises major concerns over the environmental consequences involved. Grassland intensification entails higher livestock densities and fertilizer application rates to increase soil productivity, which negatively affects the diversity of resident plant communities. Grasslands are being managed under a variety of agricultural production and conservation objectives;...

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 59%

How do sheep affect plant communities and arthropod populations in temperate grasslands?

Scohier

Dumont

2012

Animal

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“…Most of the published literature is concerned with the effect of single management factors on meadow communities. This does not provide any opportunity to study possible interactions between management factors, although Smith et al . (1996a) demonstrated that such interactions were unimportant compared with the single effects of fertilizer, hay cut date and grazing treatments in a 4‐year field experiment on a traditional northern meadow in Upper Teesdale, northern England.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The interactive effects of management on the productivity and plant community structure of an upland meadow: an 8‐year field trial

Smith

Shiel

Millward³

et al. 2000

Journal of Applied Ecology

121

135

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Summary 1. Agricultural policy in the Pennine Dales Environmentally Sensitive Area in northern England aims to enhance plant species diversity in agriculturally improved meadows and return them to a ‘traditional’ species composition. The interacting effects of management on vegetation and productivity were tested in a split‐split‐split plot experiment. Three grazing treatments (autumn grazing with cattle and sheep, spring grazing with sheep, both regimes) were applied between 1990 and 98. Two fertilizer treatments (25 kg ha−1 N plus 12·5 kg ha−1 P2O5 and K2O, no fertilizer); three hay cut date treatments (14 June, 21 July, 1 September) and two seed addition treatments (no seed, seed of many species) were used within the grazing treatments. 2. By 1998, all the main treatments had produced small but significant changes to plant species diversity. A particularly large increase in diversity occurred with the combination of autumn and spring grazing, 21 July hay cut date and seed addition treatments. This change was achieved by an episodic rather than a regular increase in species over time. 3. Rhinanthus minor spread to most plots after its introduction as a constituent of the seed treatment. By 1996 it was particularly abundant in all treatment combinations that included autumn grazing, no mineral fertilizer and a July haycut. Populations of > 40 plants m−2 were associated with the lowest yields of hay. 4. ‘Unimproved‐traditional’ plant communities, mainly Festuca ovina–Agrostis capillaris–Galium saxatile grassland, occupied more than 66% of the trial area. Anthoxanthum odoratum–Geranium sylvaticum grasslands were most abundant in 1996, being primarily associated with the combination of autumn and spring grazing, 21 July and 1 September hay cut dates and seed addition treatments, over both fertilizer treatments. 5. Yields of herbage biomass initially declined over time in all treatment combinations. Lowest yields in most years were associated with the autumn and spring grazing, 14 June cutting date and no fertilizer treatments. 6. Management to increase the number of plant species in agriculturally improved mesotrophic grassland requires the joint implementation of appropriate cut date and grazing regimes, probably to provide regeneration niches, and the application of seed to provide species to fill these niches. The small amount of mineral fertilizer used in this experiment had a measurable effect, but was of lesser importance.

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“…The importance of such a temporally deep understanding is illustrated when considered alongside current ecological research into hay meadow management. While much is being gleaned from scientific field trials, authors such as Smith et al (1996) have suggested that it may take between 10 and 20 years for conclusive results to be gained on the exact impact of certain management schemes on meadow diversity. Oral histories, therefore, are uniquely placed to illustrate and understand longer-term impacts of particular managements -projecting back in time to link the current status of meadows to very specific past events and practices.…”

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confidence: 99%

Oral histories, farm practice and uncovering meaning in the countryside

Riley

Harvey²

2007

Social & Cultural Geography

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Building on recent analyses of 'heterogenous agri-cultures' this paper considers the potential of an oral history approach to explore the geographies of farming cultures andThe work of George Ewart Evans, from which this extract is taken, is considered amongst the pioneering work of oral history in Britain (Howkins 1994). Evans's work attempted to 1 interpret and record changing customs and working habits as well as changing dialects and language in Rural Britain. Paramount in much of this work was the desire to record information about changes to farming practices and how these were linked to shifting social patterns and transformation in the countryside (see for example Evans 1965;Evans 1975;Evans & Gentleman 1993). Written against the wider academic background of scientific certainty and deepening faith in methods of quantification and social modell ing in this period, the extract suggests that little value was seen by 'scientists' in collecting oral accounts of this change. Although one may question Evans's faith in collecting merely for the sake of 'preservation' and the apparent sense of nostalgia and regret as the basic motivation for oral history collectors, one can also trace a strong sense of purpose through

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The conservation management of mesotrophic (meadow) grassland in northern England. 1. Effects of grazing, cutting date and fertilizer on the vegetation of a traditionally managed sward

Cited by 49 publications

References 9 publications

How do sheep affect plant communities and arthropod populations in temperate grasslands?

How do sheep affect plant communities and arthropod populations in temperate grasslands?

The interactive effects of management on the productivity and plant community structure of an upland meadow: an 8‐year field trial

Oral histories, farm practice and uncovering meaning in the countryside

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