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

Author:

Schaub SergeiORCID,Finger RobertORCID,Leiber FlorianORCID,Probst StefanORCID,Kreuzer MichaelORCID,Weigelt AlexandraORCID,Buchmann NinaORCID,Scherer-Lorenzen MichaelORCID

Abstract

AbstractIn 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.

Funder

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung

Stiftung Mercator Schweiz

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Subject

General Physics and Astronomy,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology,General Chemistry

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