Reseeding inhibits grassland vegetation degradation – Global evidence

Abstract

Global grassland faces different degradation degrees, and reseeding is commonly used to restore degraded grasslands. However, the factors affecting the results of reseeding restorations worldwide remain unclear. Here, we screened 141 independently published articles and performed a meta-analysis of the extracted 1386 data pairs. We selected five quantitative indices and four α diversity indices to analyze the effects of reseeding on the degraded grassland. Our results showed that reseeding significantly increased the quantitative indices and diversity index of degraded grasslands worldwide. Mixed reseeding has the best effect on improving the diversity of degraded grassland. A high mixed reseeding number was more conducive to restoring degraded grassland diversity. The more severe the grassland degradation, the better the restoration effect of reseeding. Short- and medium-term restorations significantly increased the diversity of degraded grassland. However, the restoration time increased the response proportion of aboveground biomass and cover. After reseeding, the proportion of aboveground biomass (AGB) response in humid areas was greater than in arid regions. This study explored the overall effect of reseeding restoration and the factors affecting reseeding restoration, providing a basis for the global restoration of degraded grassland and promoting the healthy development and sustainable use of grassland.