Wood Pastures in Central Slovakia – Collapse of a Traditional Land Use Form

Abstract

Wood pastures with pollard trees have been a common land-use type across Europe. The trees, besides having positive environmental effects on livestock, served as important source of fodder and wood. Pollarded wood pastures were hence a multifunctional, state of the art, highly productive farming ecosystems. Despite relatively drastic treatment, the trees regenerated quite well, and grew to relatively high-age. When pollarding lapses for longer period the wood pasture may confusingly resemble an ancient forest. Using aerial photographs of Slovakia from 1949-1950 we have identified 950 individual wood pasture localities with total area of 265.5 km 2 within the Self-Governing Region of Banská Bystrica. Majority of identified wood pasture habitats were actively managed in the first half of the 20th century. Nowadays, less than 2.5% has preserved its original structure, the rest has been abandoned (92.8%) or actively transformed into different land-use form. We conducted a field survey in order to identify historical pollarding within the Gavurky protected area, one of the last and best preserved wood pastures in Slovakia. By evaluating habitual features, we were able to confirm historical pollarding for more than 80% of present veteran trees. We provide framework for identification of pollarding in historical wood pasture localities, applicable in the conditions of long-term management cessation.

Opportunities to Capitalize on Transylvanian Wood Pastures through Nature-Based Tourism: A Case Study of Viscri Village, Brașov County, Romania

“…Wood-pastures in Europe are models/archetypes of High-Nature Value (HNV) farmland, which hold a unique biodiversity value and are socially and culturally important [1][2][3][4]. In other words, these are complex socio-ecological systems, products of the long-term interaction between society and the surrounding landscape [5].…”

Impact on Forest and Vegetation Due to Human Interventions

“…The Swiss Alps have a long history of forest grazing [22]. Wood pastures are a distinguishing feature of the traditional European rural landscape [23]. Other significant factors of forest loss and degradation in the Siwaliks and midhills include overgrazing, which is a major driver in Nepal's Siwaliks and high highlands [24].…”

Mountain wood-pastures and forest cover loss in Romania

“…Wood-pastures represent a distinctive element of the traditional European rural landscape (Wiezik et al, 2018). They have had an essential role in supporting raising extensive livestock Hartel, Plieninger, & Varga, 2015;Roellig et al, 2016).…”

“…Currently, rapid land cover changes occur in wood-pastures all over Europe under pressure from various drivers. The persistence of wood-pastures is challenged by abandonment and management changes (Hartel et al, 2013;Hartel & Plieninger, 2014;Hartel et al, 2015Hartel et al, , 2017Pereponova & Skaloš, 2019;Plieninger et al, 2015;Wiezik et al, 2018). Studies on long-term land cover change showed that the woody vegetation cover in the Carpathian Mountains increased because of the abandonment of farming (Griffiths, Müller, Kuemmerle, & Hostert, 2013;Kuemmerle, Müller, Griffiths, & Rusu, 2009;Munteanu et al, 2014;Vanonckelen & Van Rompaey, 2015).…”