Unknown

Dataset Information

0

Plant diversity effects on forage quality, yield and revenues of semi-natural grasslands.


ABSTRACT: In agricultural settings, plant diversity is often associated with low biomass yield and forage quality, while biodiversity experiments typically find the opposite. We address this controversy by assessing, over 1 year, plant diversity effects on biomass yield, forage quality (i.e. nutritive values), quality-adjusted yield (biomass yield × forage quality), and revenues across different management intensities (extensive to intensive) on subplots of a large-scale grassland biodiversity experiment. Plant diversity substantially increased quality-adjusted yield and revenues. These findings hold for a wide range of management intensities, i.e., fertilization levels and cutting frequencies, in semi-natural grasslands. Plant diversity was an important production factor independent of management intensity, as it enhanced quality-adjusted yield and revenues similarly to increasing fertilization and cutting frequency. Consequently, maintaining and reestablishing plant diversity could be a way to sustainably manage temperate grasslands.

SUBMITTER: Schaub S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7005841 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

altmetric image

Publications

Plant diversity effects on forage quality, yield and revenues of semi-natural grasslands.

Schaub Sergei S   Finger Robert R   Leiber Florian F   Probst Stefan S   Kreuzer Michael M   Weigelt Alexandra A   Buchmann Nina N   Scherer-Lorenzen Michael M  

Nature communications 20200207 1


In agricultural settings, plant diversity is often associated with low biomass yield and forage quality, while biodiversity experiments typically find the opposite. We address this controversy by assessing, over 1 year, plant diversity effects on biomass yield, forage quality (i.e. nutritive values), quality-adjusted yield (biomass yield × forage quality), and revenues across different management intensities (extensive to intensive) on subplots of a large-scale grassland biodiversity experiment.  ...[more]

Similar Datasets

| S-EPMC9894004 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC7685434 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC6820780 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC8009352 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC8476543 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC8839640 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC10538120 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC9006228 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC4687681 | biostudies-literature
| S-EPMC3364189 | biostudies-literature