Permanent Grassland Research Articles

Changes in agricultural climate in South-Eastern England from 1892 to 2016 and differences in cereal and permanent grassland yield

The long-term increasing trend of annual mean temperature is only one aspect of recent climate change. Other changes in climate, seen in within-year weather patterns relevant to crop production, have also occurred since the late-19th Century. Multivariate analysis combining Principal Components Analysis and K-means clustering applied to temporal meteorological datasets (monthly summaries of rainfall, temperature and sunlight duration at Rothamsted Research, UK, between 1892 and 2016) identified ten distinct clusters of years, each with different annual weather patterns. The frequency of occurrence of the years within each cluster altered considerably during this period, with the late 20th and early 21st Century distinctly different to earlier in the 20th Century, providing clear evidence of climate change with regard to the whole weather profile rather than just warming alone. The most-frequently represented cluster of the 21st Century to date had warmer temperatures with more intense rainfall but a dry June, compared to all other clusters. Half of the clusters identified were not represented in the most-recent 25-year period. Analysis of the total biomass yield of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), and grassland amongst the different weather clusters showed that years in clusters typical of the 20th Century climate provided greater off-take than those from the early-21st Century, but this impact was less for the pasture than for the two cereal crops implying herbage production was the more resilient to the changing climate at this site.

Metagenomic approaches reveal differences in genetic diversity and relative abundance of nitrifying bacteria and archaea in contrasting soils

The abundance and phylogenetic diversity of functional genes involved in nitrification were assessed in Rothamsted field plots under contrasting management regimes—permanent bare fallow, grassland, and arable (wheat) cultivation maintained for more than 50 years. Metagenome and metatranscriptome analysis indicated nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB) were more abundant than ammonia oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) in all soils. The most abundant AOA and AOB in the metagenomes were, respectively, Nitrososphaera and Ca. Nitrososcosmicus (family Nitrososphaeraceae) and Nitrosospira and Nitrosomonas (family Nitrosomonadaceae). The most abundant NOB were Nitrospira including the comammox species Nitrospira inopinata, Ca. N. nitrificans and Ca. N. nitrosa. Anammox bacteria were also detected. Nitrospira and the AOA Nitrososphaeraceae showed most transcriptional activity in arable soil. Similar numbers of sequences were assigned to the amoA genes of AOA and AOB, highest in the arable soil metagenome and metatranscriptome; AOB amoA reads included those from comammox Nitrospira clades A and B, in addition to Nitrosomonadaceae. Nitrification potential assessed in soil from the experimental sites (microcosms amended or not with DCD at concentrations inhibitory to AOB but not AOA), was highest in arable samples and lower in all assays containing DCD, indicating AOB were responsible for oxidizing ammonium fertilizer added to these soils.

Using Matching Traits to Study the Impacts of Land-Use Intensification on Plant-Pollinator Interactions in European Grasslands: A Review.

Simple SummaryPermanent grasslands are main habitats for many plant species and pollinators. Their destruction as well as their intensification has a major impact on plant and pollinator biodiversity, which has a cascading effect on pollination. However, we lack an understanding of these effects, thereby limiting our ability to predict them. In this review, we synthesised the literature on the mechanisms behind this cascade to provide new insights into the relationship between land-use intensification and pollination. By matching functional traits that mediate the relationship between the two trophic levels, we identified major knowledge gaps about how land-use intensification affects plant–pollinator interactions and how it favours plants with generalised floral traits, which are likely harmful to pollination.Permanent grasslands are suitable habitats for many plant and animal species, among which are pollinating insects that provide a wide range of ecosystem services. A global crisis in pollination ecosystem service has been highlighted in recent decades, partly the result of land-use intensification. At the grassland scale, however, the underlying mechanisms of land-use intensification that affect plant–pollinator interactions and pollination remain understudied. In this review, we first synthesise the literature to provide new insights into the relationships between land-use intensification and pollination by using matching community and interaction traits. We then identify knowledge gaps and summarise how land-use intensification of grassland influences floral traits that may in turn be associated with modifications to pollinator matching traits. Last, we summarise how these modifications may affect pollination function on permanent grasslands. Overall, land-use intensification may lead to a shift in flower colour, a decrease in mean nectar tube depth and a decrease in reward production and pollen quality at the community level. This, in turn, may generate a decrease in pollinator mouthparts length and body size, that may favour pollinators that require a low amount of floral reward. We found no study citing the effect of land-use intensification on volatile organic compounds emitted by flowers despite the importance of these molecules in pollinator community composition. Overall, our review highlighted major knowledge gaps about the effects of land-use intensification on plant–pollinator interactions, and suggests that land-use intensification could favour plants with generalised floral traits that adversely affect pollination.

Plantago lanceolata – An overview of its agronomically and healing valuable features

Abstract This article gives an overview of the widely distributed herb ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata). Currently, this plant is mostly grown in grasslands, rarely in arable land, and its secondary metabolites are used in medicine. Studies cited in the article indicate its very rapid growth and deep rooting in the soil, which results in high drought tolerance and uptake of valuable nutrients from deep soil layers. An intensive symbiosis with various mycorrhizal fungi is characteristic of plantain for a high capacity for nutrient and water appropriation. It is also characterized by different contents of iridoid glycosides like aucubin and catalpol in shoots and roots of different varieties. The use of P. lanceolata is discussed on permanent and non-permanent grasslands where agriculturally specific varieties have been developed for grazing animals showing positive health effects in them. Information is provided on the cultivation of ribwort plantain, including studies on sowing and fertilization, the yield and infestation of the plant with pathogens, and the occurrence of iridoid glycosides in the plant. In addition, information is included on pests that threaten the plant’s cultivation.

Long-term stability of soil bacterial and fungal community structures revealed in their abundant and rare fractions.

Despite the importance of soil microorganisms for ecosystem services, long‐term surveys of their communities are largely missing. Using metabarcoding, we assessed temporal dynamics of soil bacterial and fungal communities in three land‐use types, i.e., arable land, permanent grassland, and forest, over five years. Soil microbial communities remained relatively stable and differences over time were smaller than those among sites. Temporal variability was highest in arable soils. Indications for consistent shifts in community structure over five years were only detected at one site for bacteria and at two sites for fungi, which provided further support for long‐term stability of soil microbial communities. A sliding window analysis was applied to assess the effect of OTU abundance on community structures. Partial communities with decreasing OTU abundances revealed a gradually decreasing structural similarity with entire communities. This contrasted with the steep decline of OTU abundances, as subsets of rare OTUs (<0.01%) revealed correlations of up to 0.97 and 0.81 with the entire bacterial and fungal communities. Finally, 23.4% of bacterial and 19.8% of fungal OTUs were identified as scarce, i.e., neither belonging to site‐cores nor correlating to environmental factors, while 67.3% of bacterial and 64.9% of fungal OTUs were identified as rare but not scarce. Our results demonstrate high stability of soil microbial communities in their abundant and rare fractions over five years. This provides a step towards defining site‐specific normal operating ranges of soil microbial communities, which is a prerequisite for detecting community shifts that may occur due to changing environmental conditions or anthropogenic activities.

Comparison of grassland plant-pollinator networks on dairy farms in three contrasting French landscapes

Temperate grasslands provide both habitats and flower resources for pollinators in agricultural landscapes. Plant-pollinator networks change according to local and landscape variables, which are important to identify to help conserve pollinators in grasslands. We analysed plant-pollinator networks in 18 grasslands on experimental dairy farms located in three French regions contrasting by their climate, altitude, landscape or management. We combined visual surveys and pollen DNA barcoding. Our objectives were to determine which environmental factors influence pollinator taxa abundance and diversity and differences among the visual plant-pollinator networks in the three farming regions. Flower-visiting insects were trapped in six grasslands per farm during three sessions from mid-April to mid-July along fixed 400 m2 transects. Insects were identified individually to the lowest taxonomic rank possible. Pollen carried by insects was identified using nuclear ribosomal ITS2 sequences belonging to the NCBI nucleotide database. The size and diversity of plant-pollinator networks were much larger and higher in permanent grasslands at the two farms located in lowlands (Mirecourt) and mountains (Marcenat) than those at the farm with temporary grasslands and a crop landscape (Lusignan), but the degree of specialisation (H2′) was relatively similar and low (mean of 0.46). Diptera, especially Empididae and Syrphidae, represented most plant-pollinator interactions in Mirecourt and Marcenat, while Hymenoptera were more abundant at Lusignan. The percentage of semi-natural habitats in 500 m buffers and vegetation height explained 23% of the variance in pollinator abundance. Ranunculus sp. Knautia arvensis, Centaurea jacea and Trifolium repens were key plant species in the networks. DNA metabarcoding of pollen loads identified 114 genera in addition to those identified by visual observations (+34–42 per site), reflecting insects’ floral pathways and differences in the immediate landscape among farms. This study highlighted the importance of Diptera in plant-pollinator networks and the need to conserve permanent grassland diversity to conserve pollinators.

Robustness to import declines of three types of European farming systems assessed with a dynamic nitrogen flow model

CONTEXTAgriculture in Western Europe is predominantly input-intensive (fertilisers, water, fuel, pesticides) and relies on feed imports. As a result, it is dependent on oil, which may start to decline in production in the 2020s, thus exposing the agricultural sector to potential economic stress, including increased input prices and decreased farmer purchase capacities. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the capacity of European farming systems (FS) to maintain production levels despite a decline in oil production (i.e., robustness). OBJECTIVEWe aimed to model and compare the time variations in the animal- and crop-sourced production of three French FS under three scenarios of decreased availability of feed and synthetic fertiliser imports. METHODSWe developed a FS-scale dynamic model that considers nitrogen flows between livestock, plant, and soil compartments. Plant production is a function of soil mineral nitrogen levels, and livestock numbers depend on feed availability. The three FS are characterised by different crop-grassland-livestock balances: (i) field crop (Plateau Picard), (ii) intensive monogastric (Bretagne Centrale), and (iii) extensive ruminant (Bocage Bourbonnais). The three scenarios consist of different combinations of synthetic nitrogen fertilisers and feed import availability declines until 2050: a decrease in synthetic fertilisers only (Synth-), a decrease in feed imports (Feed-), and a decrease in both external inputs (Synth-Feed-). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSThe first two scenarios highlight the positive role of livestock effluents and permanent grasslands on the robustness of food production. In the Synth-Feed- scenario, the extensive ruminant FS exhibits robustness (no decline in food production) for 13 years, whereas the field crop FS exhibits robustness for 4 years. In contrast, the intensive monogastric FS shows decreased food production within the first year. The difference between the two crop-livestock FS can be explained by livestock density, herd composition but also plant cover composition. In the long term, all three FS show a decrease in food production between 45 and 60%. SIGNIFICANCEOur modelling work shed some light on the role of ruminants and permanent grasslands in making FS more robust to decreases in synthetic fertiliser and feed import availability, increasing the time without production decline after the beginning of the perturbation. For longer-time resilience, configurational changes are still necessary, however a greater robustness gives more time to implement them, therefore facilitating adaptation and transformation. Our model paves the way to the study of resilience of FS from the point of view of their crop-grassland-livestock configuration and their dependence on external inputs.

Evaluation of tall fescue as a low radiocesium-uptake grass species to replace orchardgrass in Japan

Grasslands in Tohoku and North Kanto, Japan were contaminated with radiocesium released from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant in March 2011. The dominant pasture species in the permanent grasslands of these areas is orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.). Two field studies were conducted to determine the potential of a low radiocesium-uptake forage grass to replace orchardgrass for remediation of contaminated grasslands. From 2012 to 2014, tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) showed lower 137Cs uptake than orchardgrass under harvesting condition. The annual mean 137Cs activity concentration and transfer factor in tall fescue were half of those in orchardgrass. There was no significant difference in the 137Cs activity concentration among the five cultivars of tall fescue at the third harvest in 2012. From 2016 to 2019, another field study was conducted in a pasture with tall fescue and orchardgrass introduced by overseeding under heavy grazing pressure after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Tall fescue and orchardgrass were collected in May, July, and September from four paddocks before rotational grazing. Three grasses that were originally present, Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), and white clover (Trifolium repens L.), were collected each time that tall fescue and orchardgrass were sampled in 2016–2017. They were also collected at the sampling time in May of 2018 and 2019. Tall fescue showed a consistently lower transfer factor than orchardgrass during the four years. Tall fescue had the lowest transfer factor compared with the three originally grown plant species. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan recommends an exchangeable K2O content of 0.3–0.4 g kg−1 in soil (0–15 cm depth) to keep the 137Cs activity concentration in forage grass below the provisional tolerance level for feed. The soil exchangeable K2O content in both field studies was lower than this. Tall fescue is considered a low radiocesium-uptake grass and a potential replacement for orchardgrass in Japan. The use of tall fescue might reduce the amount of potassium fertilizer needed in contaminated grasslands.

Evaluation of Selected Indicators Pointing at the Current Condition and Importance of Agricultural Land Protection in Slovakia

Abstract Agricultural land is currently protected by many subjects and institutions. The characteristics of the soil in terms of its functions and importance for individuals or society from perspectives of several scientific disciplines is dealt with by several authors. The aim of the paper is to point out the current state and importance of the agricultural land protection in Slovakia in connection with the threats that affect its quantity and overall quality. The indicators as the area of agricultural land and the structure of the land fund, the evolution of agricultural land withdrawals for non-agricultural purposes and the current state or structure of legislation and institutions in the field of agricultural land protection in Slovakia were evaluated. The paper pointed out the important role of agricultural land in the country, as its area, especially with the majority of arable land and permanent grasslands, represents the majority of the total area of Slovakia. For several years, however, the volume of agricultural land has been steadily declining. This phenomenon is partly caused by the agricultural land withdrawals, which have now managed to stabilize at an average of 1000ha of withdrawn land per year. In Slovakia, there is currently a large number of legislative acts regulating the protection and agricultural land withdrawals, as well as a wide range of state and non-state institutions that operate in the field of agricultural land protection. The effectiveness of the implementation of legislation and the effectiveness of mutual cooperation of institutions seems questionable focusing on the current state of the land fund, which leads to the need to expand research on these aspects.

Chemical and Phytocoenological Characteristics of Two Different Slovak Peatlands.

This paper presents the results of pedological and phytocoenological research focused on the detailed research of chemical parameters (pH, organic carbon, and nutrients), risk elements (As-metalloid, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn), and species composition of the vegetation of two different peatlands on the territory of Slovakia—Belianske Lúky (a fen) and Rudné (a bog). Sampling points were selected to characterize the profile of the organosol within the peatland, the soil profile between the peatland and the agricultural land, and the soil profile of the outlying agricultural land, which is used as permanent grassland. Based on phytocoenological records, a semi-quantitative analysis of taxa in accordance with the Braun–Blanquet scale was performed. The study revealed that the thickness of the peat horizon of the fen in comparison with the bog is very low. In terms of the quality of organic matter, the monitored peatlands are dominated by fresh plant residues such as cellulose and lignin. Differences between individual types of peatlands were also found in the soil reaction and the supply of nitrogen to the organic matter of peat. The values of the soil exchange reaction were neutral on the fen, as well as slightly alkaline but extremely low on the bog. A significantly higher nitrogen supply was found in the organic matter of the fen in contrast to the bog. At the same time, extremely low content of accessible P and an above-limit content of As in the surface horizons were also found on the fen. From the phytocoenological point of view, 22 plant species were identified on the fen, while only five species were identified on the bog, which also affected the higher diversity (H’) and equitability (e). The results of the statistical testing confirmed the diversity of the studied peatlands and the different impact of environmental variables on plant diversity.

Elevated Atmospheric CO2 Modifies Mostly the Metabolic Active Rhizosphere Soil Microbiome in the Giessen FACE Experiment

Elevated levels of atmospheric CO2 lead to the increase of plant photosynthetic rates, carbon inputs into soil and root exudation. In this work, the effects of rising atmospheric CO2 levels on the metabolic active soil microbiome have been investigated at the Giessen free-air CO2 enrichment (Gi-FACE) experiment on a permanent grassland site near Giessen, Germany. The aim was to assess the effects of increased C supply into the soil, due to elevated CO2, on the active soil microbiome composition. RNA extraction and 16S rRNA (cDNA) metabarcoding sequencing were performed from bulk and rhizosphere soils, and the obtained data were processed for a compositional data analysis calculating diversity indices and differential abundance analyses. The structure of the metabolic active microbiome in the rhizospheric soil showed a clear separation between elevated and ambient CO2 (p = 0.002); increased atmospheric CO2 concentration exerted a significant influence on the microbiomes differentiation (p = 0.01). In contrast, elevated CO2 had no major influence on the structure of the bulk soil microbiome (p = 0.097). Differential abundance results demonstrated that 42 bacterial genera were stimulated under elevated CO2. The RNA-based metabarcoding approach used in this research showed that the ongoing atmospheric CO2 increase of climate change will significantly shift the microbiome structure in the rhizosphere.

Re-established grasslands on farmland promote pollinators more than predators

Agricultural intensification is among the major threats to farmland biodiversity and associated ecosystem services. Agri-environment schemes in Europe aim to counteract the continuous decrease of permanent grassland habitat and related decline of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. We established new grasslands adjacent to permanent old grasslands to study effects on arthropod pollinators and predators. Over three years, we assessed the effects of newly established grasslands on activity density, species richness and assemblages of pollinators (syrphids, bumblebees, solitary bees) and ground-dwelling predatory arthropods (carabids, spiders, ants). Pollinator activity density and species richness of all three pollinator groups approximately doubled in newly established grasslands compared to old grasslands, indicating suitability of new grasslands as pollinator feeding habitat. Predator responses were less consistent. Species richness and activity density of carabids and ants did not increase in new grasslands, indicating slower adaptation to new habitats. Spider activity density increased in the newly established grasslands and in adjacent cereal fields, but no significant differences in species richness compared to old grasslands were observed. Bumblebees and solitary bees showed distinct distance decays in cereal fields. Syrphid activity density declined in cereal fields far away from the newly established grasslands, but not nearby. Carabids increased and ants decreased in species richness and activity density with increasing distance from old grasslands in cereal fields and newly established grasslands alike. In contrast, spider species richness and activity density decreased with increasing distance from old grasslands in cereal fields only, but there was no distance decay in newly established grasslands. While pollinators utilized the additional floral resources within the whole area of newly established grassland quickly, predators reacted much slower. Even after three years, there was no measurable response of carabid and ant activity density and only a minor response of spiders. This clearly shows that short-term measures are not sufficient to sustainably conserve farmland biodiversity. The conservation of permanent grassland and landscape heterogeneity should be prioritized. However, the restoration of new grassland should also be encouraged by agri-environment schemes as a supplement, to enhance functional biodiversity in agricultural landscapes.

Restoration of plant diversity in permanent grassland by seeding: Assessing the limiting factors along land‐use gradients

Abstract Land‐use intensification has caused dramatic declines in grassland biodiversity, and in Europe this decline has not yet been halted. Therefore, a major challenge in ecological restoration is to effectively restore plant diversity in permanent grasslands, that is, long‐term managed grassland not being used as cropland. As species richness is often limited by seed dispersal, introducing locally absent species is crucial. Seeding diverse seed mixtures is an appropriate tool, but restoration outcomes are highly variable. Considering constraints by land‐use intensity and plant functional traits during restoration could improve the efficacy of restoration efforts. We established a full‐factorial experiment with high‐diversity seeding and topsoil disturbance in 73 grasslands along land‐use intensity and productivity gradients and evaluated the restoration success over 5 years. In addition, after 5 years we assessed the number of established species and tested whether specific traits promoted the establishment of sown species in interaction with productivity. Plant diversity increased considerably when seeding and disturbance were combined while seeding alone only slightly increased species richness. Along land‐use gradients, we found no direct effects of grazing or mowing on the establishment of sown species, but fertilization indirectly limited establishment in the combined treatment via a negative effect of productivity. Functional traits structured the establishment of sown species, especially in the combined treatments, but effects varied with productivity. Species with low seed mass and low specific leaf area had greater establishment success in low‐productivity grasslands, whereas species with high seed mass had greater establishment in high‐productivity grasslands. Synthesis and applications. Our results highlight the potential of using diverse seed mixtures for biodiversity restoration in a wide range of permanent grasslands, especially when combined with topsoil disturbance. However, productivity both limited restoration success and affected establishment via an interaction with plant functional traits. As productivity is a major constraint in grassland restoration, we strongly recommend to first stop fertilization and reduce soil nutrient loads in highly productive grasslands. Restoration by seeding, with or without disturbance, should only be applied when productivity is reduced and the local environment should be considered to compile site‐specific seed mixtures to maximize restoration success. ​

Earthworm communities are supported by perennial bioenergy cropping systems

During the last decade a variety of perennial bioenergy crops (PECs) have been introduced into European agriculture. This study was designed to investigate the impact of various PECs on earthworm community patterns (species composition, numbers, biomass, α-diversity, life-form categories) at a landscape scale in Western Germany. The PECs investigated were cup plant (CP), tall wheatgrass (TW) and giant knotweed (GK). In total, 4 field replicates of each perennial crop were investigated at 9 study sites with the exception of CP, for which only 3 replicate sites were available. PECs were compared with silage maize as an annual bioenergy crop (AEC) and permanent grasslands (PGL). The earthworm community of the study area consisted of 13 species in total. Mean species number ranged from 2.7 (AEC) < 2.8 (GK) < 3.8 (TW) < 3.9 (PGL) < 4.2 (CP). Overall, PECs took an intermediate position between AEC and PGL concerning earthworm population data including α-diversity and community structure as indicated by Shannon-Weaver index (H’), species number and Evenness (E). There was a clear and close to significant (p < 0.1) increase in the mean total earthworm number in the range AEC (43.3 ind. m−2) – PECs (86.7 ind. m−2) – PGL (114.4 ind. m−2). Fresh earthworm biomass varied from 21.1 g m−2 (AEC) to 35.7 g m−2 (PGL) to 40.1 g m−2 (PECs), however, this difference was only significant for mean biomass of juveniles. Endogeic species were highly dominant in soils cultivated with PECs. Generalized linear mixed models revealed that soil pH, amounts of soil organic carbon and plant available soil water content were partly significant environmental driving variables for the improvement of the earthworm community in soils cultivated with PECs.

Extending grassland age for climate change mitigation and adaptation on clay soils

AbstractPermanent grassland soils can act as a sink for carbon and may therefore positively contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation. We compared young (5–15 years since latest grassland renewal) with old (&gt;20 years since latest grassland renewal) permanent grassland soils in terms of carbon stock, carbon sequestration, drought tolerance and flood resistance. The research was carried out on marine clay soil at 10 dairy farms with young and old permanent grassland. As hypothesized, the carbon stock was larger in old grassland (62 Mg C ha−1) topsoil (0–10 cm) than in young grassland topsoil (51 Mg C ha−1). The carbon sequestration rate was greater in young (on average 3.0 Mg C ha−1 year−1) compared with old grassland (1.6 Mg C ha−1 year−1) and determined by initial carbon stock. Regarding potential drought tolerance, we found larger soil moisture and soil organic matter (SOM) contents in old compared with young grassland topsoils. As hypothesized, the old grassland soils were more resistant to heavy rainfall as measured by water infiltration rate and macroporosity (at 20 cm depth) in comparison with the young grassland soils. In contrast to our hypothesis we did not find a difference in rooting between young and old permanent grassland, probably due to large variability in root biomass and root tip density. We conclude that old grasslands at dairy farms on clay soil can contribute more to the ecosystem services climate change mitigation and climate change adaptation than young grasslands. This study shows that under real farm conditions on a clay topsoil, carbon stock increases with grassland age and even after 30 years carbon saturation has not been reached. Further study is warranted to determine by how much extending grassland age can contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation.Highlights We studied the effect of young versus old grassland on a range of soil properties related to climate change mitigation and adaptation. Old, more than young, grassland soils offer potential to mitigate and adapt to climate change. This finding gives farmers insight into the merits of extending grassland age on clay soils. Soil carbon stock determines carbon sequestration rate more than grassland age.

Investigating the potential of Sentinel-2 configuration to predict the quality of Mediterranean permanent grasslands in open woodlands

The assessment of pasture quality in permanent grasslands is essential for their conservation and management, as it can contribute to making real-time decisions for livestock management. In this study, we assessed the potential of Sentinel-2 configuration to predict forage quality in high diverse Mediterranean permanent grasslands of open woodlands. We evaluated the performance of Partial Least Squares Regression (PLS) models to predict crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF) and enzyme digestibility of organic matter (EDOM) by using three different reflectance datasets: (i) laboratory measurements of reflectance of dry and ground pasture samples re-sampled to Sentinel-2 configuration (Spec-lab) (ii) field in-situ measurements of grasslands canopy reflectance resampled to Sentinel-2 configuration (Spec-field); (iii) and Bottom Of Atmosphere Sentinel-2 imagery. For the three reflectance datasets, the models to predict CP content showed moderate performance and predictive ability. Mean R2test = 0.68 were obtained using Spec-lab data, mean R2test decreased by 0.11 with Spec-field and by 0.18 when Sentinel-2 reflectance was used. Statistics for NDF showed worse predictions than those obtained for CP: predictions produced with Spec-lab showed mean R2test = 0.64 and mean RPDtest = 1.73. The mean values of R2test = 0.50 and RPDtest = 1.54 using Sentinel-2 BOA reflectance were marginally better than the values obtained with Spec-field (mean R2test = 0.48, mean RPDtest = 1.43). For ADF and EDOM, only predictions made with Spec-lab produced acceptable results. Bands from the red-edge region, especially band 5, and the SWIR regions showed the highest contribution to estimating CP and NDF. Bands 2, blue and 4, red also seem to be important. The implementation of field spectroscopy in combination with Sentinel-2 imagery proved to be feasible to produce forage quality maps and to develop larger datasets. This study contributes to increasing knowledge of the potential and applicability of Sentinel-2 to predict the quality of Mediterranean permanent grasslands in open woodlands.

Is the Greening Instrument a Valid Precedent for the New Green Architecture of the CAP? The Case of Spain

The Common Agricultural Policy 2014–2020, set up in 2015 and extended until 31 December 2022, introduced a payment instrument called Greening. The aim of Greening was to encourage agricultural practices that are beneficial for the environment while also contributing to economic and territorial dynamism. The purpose of this article is to study the effect that Greening has had in Spain. We consider five difference-in-difference models, one for each of the variables proposed: ecological focus areas, permanent grasslands over utilised agricultural area, CO2 emissions stemming from agricultural land use changes and the presence of woody crops, agricultural income, and affiliates of the special agricultural regime. The data used come from the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, the Ministry for Inclusion, Social Security, and Migrations, and the Spanish Emissions Inventory System. For the diff-in diff estimations, we use Spain’s regions as control and treatment units from 2011 to 2018, the aim being to provide observations ex ante Greening (2011–2014) and ex post (2015–2018). The results show that Greening had a limited impact, questioning its efficiency for meeting its goal, and that it is not a sound precedent for building the new green architecture of the CAP.

Dynamic simulation of management events for assessing impacts of climate change on pre-alpine grassland productivity

The productivity of permanent temperate cut grasslands is mainly driven by weather, soil characteristics, botanical composition and management. To adapt management to climate change, adjusting the cutting dates to reflect earlier onset of growth and expansion of the vegetation period is particularly important. Simulations of cut grassland productivity under climate change scenarios demands management settings to be dynamically derived from actual plant development rather than using static values derived from current management operations. This is even more important in the alpine region, where the predicted temperature increase is twice as high as compared to the global or Northern Hemispheric average.For this purpose, we developed a dynamic management module that provides timing of cutting and manuring events when running the biogeochemical model LandscapeDNDC. We derived the dynamic management rules from long-term harvest measurements and monitoring data collected at pre-alpine grassland sites located in S-Germany and belonging to the TERENO monitoring network. We applied the management module for simulations of two grassland sites covering the period 2011–2100 and driven by scenarios that reflect the two representative concentration pathways (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 and evaluated yield developments of different management regimes.The management module was able to represent timing of current management operations in high agreement with several years of field observations (r² > 0.88). Even more, the shift of the first cutting dates scaled to a +1 °C temperature increase simulated with the climate change scenarios (−9.1 to −17.1 days) compared well to the shift recorded by the German Weather Service (DWD) in the study area from 1991−2016 (−9.4 to −14.0 days). In total, the shift in cutting dates and expansion of the growing season resulted in 1−2 additional cuts per year until 2100. Thereby, climate change increased yields of up to 6 % and 15 % in the RCP 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios with highest increases mainly found for dynamically adapted grassland management going along with increasing fertilization rates. In contrast, no or only minor yield increases were associated with simulations restricted to fertilization rates of 170 kg N ha−1 yr−1 as required by national legislations. Our study also shows that yields significantly decreased in drought years, when soil moisture is limiting plant growth but due to comparable high precipitation and water holding capacity of soils, this was observed mainly in the RCP 8.5 scenario in the last decades of the century.

Environmental impact and food production of small-scale mountain dairy farms at different supplementation levels

In mountain areas such as South Tyrol, Italy, in addition to extensively managed farms with dual-purpose breeds, there is an increasing number of farms raising high-yielding breeds, that depend on large quantities of concentrated feed imported from other regions. A large supply of nutrients not only leads to unbalanced nutrient budgets but also to a lower contribution to net human food supply by using large amounts of human edible feedstuff. 64 dairy farms managed at differing concentrated feed intensity levels in South Tyrol were assessed. The farms were divided into four groups according to the amount of concentrated feed used (high [H] vs. low [L]) and the breed (Tyrolean Grey [TG] vs. Brown Swiss [BS]). The following groups were analyzed: H-BS with ⌀ 8.7, H-TG with ⌀ 6.1, L-BS with ⌀ 4.0 and L-TG with ⌀2.8 kg concentrated feed per cow and day. Farms cultivated only permanent grassland without any cash crops. N budgets for H-BS, H-TG, L-BS and L-TG were 79.54, 50.81, 37.85 and 34.16 kg ha−1, respectively, with significantly higher values for H-BS compared to the other groups. P and K budgets were also significantly higher for H-BS (12.8 and 43.96 kg ha−1, respectively) when compared to L-BS (3.10 and 8.86 kg ha−1) and L-TG (1.50 and 11.91 kg ha−1). The nutrient use efficiency, calculated as the proportion of output to input, for N and K was similar across all groups, while the P-efficiency was significantly higher in L-BS and L-TG (91.3 and 98.5%, respectively) compared to H-BS and H-TG (73.0 and 72.4%, respectively). HeFCE for protein and energy was lowest for H-TG (0.99 and 2.38, respectively) compared to L-TG (1.54 and 3.73, respectively), with the decisive factor being the amount of concentrated feed per kg ECM produced (g DM/kg ECM).

How does soil carbon sequestration affect greenhouse gas emissions from a sheep farming system? Results of a life cycle assessment case study

A life cycle assessment (LCA) study of a transition from semiintensive to semi-extensive Mediterranean dairy sheep farm suggests that the latter has a strong potential for offsetting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through the soil C sequestration (Cseq) in permanent grasslands. The extensification process shows clear environmental advantage when emission intensity is referred to the area-based functional unit (FU). Several LCA studies reported that extensive livestock systems have greater GHG emissions per mass of product than intensive one, due to their lower productivity. However, these studies did not account for soil Cseq of temporary and permanent grasslands, that have a strong potential to partly mitigate the GHG balance of ruminant production systems. Our LCA study was carried out considering the transition from a semiintensive (SI) towards a semi-extensive (SE) production system, adopted in a dairy sheep farm located in North-Western Sardinia (Italy). Impact scope included enteric methane emissions, feed production, on-farm energy use and transportation, infrastructures as well as the potential C sink from soil Cseq compared to emission intensity. In order to provide a more comprehensive analysis, we used the following FUs: 1 kg of fat and protein corrected milk (FPCM) and 1 ha of utilised agricultural area (UAA). We observed that the extensification of production system determined contrasting environmental effects when using different FUs accounting for soil Cseq. When soil Cseq in emission intensity estimate was included, we observed slightly lower values of GHG emissions per kg of FPCM in the SI production system (from 3.37 to 3.12 kg CO2 equivalents – CO2-eq), whereas a greater variation we observed in the SE one (from 3.54 to 2.90 kg CO2-eq). Considering 1 ha of UAA as FU and including the soil Cseq, the emission intensity in SI moved from 6257 to 5793 kg CO2-eq, whereas values varied from 4020 to 3299 kg CO2-eq in SE. These results indicated that the emission intensity from semi-extensive Mediterranean dairy sheep farms can be considerably reduced through the soil Cseq, although its measurement is influenced by the models used in the estimation. Highlights - Extensification of dairy sheep systems provides an environmental benefit when soil C sequestration is considered. - Extensification of dairy sheep systems determines lower environmental impact per hectare of utilized agricultural area. - Enteric methane emissions are the main source of GHG emissions of the sheep milk life cycle. - Carbon sequestration in permanent grasslands can considerably contribute to climate change mitigation.