Premium
Control of Legumes in a Species‐Rich Meadow Re‐created on Land Restored after Opencast Coal Mining
Author(s) -
Chapman R.,
Collins J.,
Younger A.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
restoration ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.214
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1526-100X
pISSN - 1061-2971
DOI - 10.1111/j.1526-100x.1996.tb00193.x
Subject(s) - grazing , legume , species richness , agronomy , biology , trifolium repens , species diversity , agroforestry , ecology
Aggressive growth by legumes may restrict the diversity of species‐rich meadows recreated on sites restored after mineral extraction. We investigated the ability of mineral nitrogen (N) applications and spring grazing to control the legume component of such meadows. The use of N suppressed Trifolium repens but had no effect on other legume species or on the species richness, diversity, or equitability of the meadow community. Spring grazing significantly reduced the yield from the legume component of the meadow. This was accompanied by an increase in the equitability index of the community, suggesting that the aggressive nature of the legumes had been checked. Spring grazing may therefore provide a means of controlling aggressive legume growth and may maintain the diversity of species‐rich meadows established on restored sites.