Naturen er bedre i økologiske hegn og skel

Det glædelige er at selv ret unge økologiske hegn og relativt nyomlagte bedrifter tilsyneladende også har stor betydning for agerlandets natur. En mere varieret hegnsvegetation giver flere levemuligheder også for andre arter, både insekter og højere dyr. Med omtanke kan landmanden altså påvirke og beskytte naturen i skel og hegn via sin daglige drift og dermed bidrage til at forbedre naturen i agerlandskabet

Landmænds opfattelser af natur og aktuel naturkvalitet på bedriften. Cross cutting rapport for CC3

Landmanden er en væsentlig aktør i forhold til at udvikle og forbedre natur og landskabskvaliteter på de økologiske bedrifter. Spørgsmålet er imidlertid, om der er en sammenhæng mellem den måde landmanden opfatter værdier i natur og landskab på, den måde han handler og forvalter i forhold til disse værdier, og så den naturkvalitet han set udfra en biologisk synsvinkel har på sin bedrift. Det spørgsmål blev der arbejdet med i en cross cutting øvelse i projektet Naturkvalitet i økologisk jordbrug

The effects of stand characteristics on the understory vegetation in Quercus petraea and Q. cerris dominated forests

The shelterwood system used in Hungary has many effects on the composition and structure of the herb layer. The aim of our study was to identify the main variables that affect the occurence of herbs and seedlings in Turkey oak-sessile oak (Quercus cerris and Q. petraea) stands. The study was carried out in the Bükk mountains, Hungary. 122 sampling plots were established in 50-150 year old oak forests, where we studied the species composition and structure of the understorey and overstorey. The occurence of herbs was affected by canopy closure, the heterogenity and patchiness of the stand, the slope and the east-west component of the aspect. The composition of saplings was significantly explained by the ratio of the two major oak species in the stand and the proximity of the adult plants. An important result for forest management was that sessile oaks were able to regenerate almost only where they were dominant in the overstorey

Vegetation diversity of conventional and organic hedgerows in Denmark

Many attempts have been made to reduce the impact of modern conventional farming on the environment and semi-natural ecosystems. One of them is organic farming, known primarily for the absence of pesticides and artificial fertilisers. The objective of this study was to study and test the differences in the spontaneous vegetation of comparable hedgerows in the same area situated within organic and conventional farming systems. The hedge bottom vegetation was surveyed during August 2001 in 13 hedgerows of each farming system. Farming type had not changed on either side of the hedgerows for the lifetime of the hedges (10-14 years). Sampling was associated with a set of 16 measured environmental variables. In the two farming systems hedgerows were comparable in terms of landscape, age, soil type, nutrient status and width. A mixed analysis of variance found no significant difference in measured soil and radiation variables between farming types. Farming types only differed in the use of pesticides. Significant differences between farming types in plant species diversity at alpha, beta and gamma levels were found. Also more species that normally occur in semi-natural habitats were found on organic farms. There was an overlap in species composition between farming type, but a slightly higher species turnover on conventional farms. The ordination axes were highly correlated with calibrated Ellenberg values of fertility, light and soil moisture. Soil fFertility and farming type were important factors to explain variation in species composition. Organic farming had a significantly reduced impact on hedge bottom vegetation compared to conventional farming. Higher extinction rates due to pesticide drift and immigration rates due to pesticide drift rates oin conventional farminsg may be responsible for the significantly higher species diversity and different species composition in hedges on organic farms. The differences in species diversity and plant types are briefly discussed

Twenty-Two Years of Warming, Fertilisation and Shading of Subarctic Heath Shrubs Promote Secondary Growth and Plasticity but Not Primary Growth

Most manipulation experiments simulating global change in tundra were short-term or did not measure plant growth directly. Here, we assessed the growth of three shrubs (Cassiope tetragona, Empetrum hermaphroditum and Betula nana) at a subarctic heath in Abisko (Northern Sweden) after 22 years of warming (passive greenhouses), fertilisation (nutrients addition) and shading (hessian fabric), and compare this to observations from the first decade of treatment. We assessed the growth rate of current-year leaves and apical stem (primary growth) and cambial growth (secondary growth), and integrated growth rates with morphological measurements and species coverage. Primary- and total growth of Cassiope and Empetrum were unaffected by manipulations, whereas growth was substantially reduced under fertilisation and shading (but not warming) for Betula. Overall, shrub height and length tended to increase under fertilisation and warming, whereas branching increased mostly in shaded Cassiope. Morphological changes were coupled to increased secondary growth under fertilisation. The species coverage showed a remarkable increase in graminoids in fertilised plots. Shrub response to fertilisation was positive in the short-term but changed over time, likely because of an increased competition with graminoids. More erected postures and large, canopies (requiring enhanced secondary growth for stem reinforcement) likely compensated for the increased light competition in Empetrum and Cassiope but did not avoid growth reduction in the shade intolerant Betula. The impact of warming and shading on shrub growth was more conservative. The lack of growth enhancement under warming suggests the absence of long-term acclimation for processes limiting biomass production. The lack of negative effects of shading on Cassiope was linked to morphological changes increasing the photosynthetic surface. Overall, tundra shrubs showed developmental plasticity over the longer term. However, such plasticity was associated clearly with growth rate trends only in fertilised plots

Gamle hegn bevarer skovbundsurter

En undersøgelse fra Kalø viser at levende hegn kan rumme mange skovbundsurter, heraf mange sjældne arter. Urterne kan også sprede sig fra skov til skov via hegnene – men det går meget langsomt

Dispersal and habitat quality as constraining factors for herbaceous forest species in an ancient hedgerow network

Reports on the importance of hedgerows for conservation of vulnerable herbaceous forest (HF) species are conflicting. The main objective of the present study was to throw light on the possible role of hedgeworks functioning as dispersal corridors for HF species. Seventy-four plots were laid out in a hedgerow network close to ancient woodlands. A total of 30 HF species were found. Richness and cumulated frequency of HF species as well as the frequencies of six selected forest herb species were compared with hedgerow age, width, distance to woodland and weighted Ellenberg indicator values for light, soil moisture, soil pH and soil fertility. Distance to woodland followed by light and soil moisture were the most important explanatory variables of HF species distribution. Dispersal limitation appeared to constrain the distribution of HF species in the hedgerow network but habitat quality was also a restricting distribution factor. A corridor effect was revealed and we conclude that old hedgerow networks may play an important role in the agrarian landscape as a dispersal corridor for HF species that are threatened by habitat fragmentation and nutrient enrichment