Mowing and fertilization effect on productivity and spectral reflectance in Bromus inermis plots
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Authors: M. I. Dyer, C. L. Turner, and T. R. Seastedt
Date: 1991
Journal: Ecological Applications
Volume: 1
Number: 4
Pages: 443-452
Summary of Methods: Vegetation measurements were used to determine the effects of three intensities of simulated grazing and fertilizer use on plant production. These measurements were then used to assess the use of remote sensing techniques for landscape scale vegetation measurements in a field consisting primarily of Bromus inermis, a cool-season grass. Mowing to 5 or 10-cm increased biomass production compared to control. 20-cm mowed plots and average biomass production was 67% greater on fertilized plots, with and without mowing, than unfertilized plots. Effects of mowing were most obvious in mid-season while effects of fertilizer were most obvious at the end of the season. The remote sensing measurements that were tested had limited use in this study area, most likely due to the internal changes in plants and changes in plant standing crop under the grazed and fertilized treatments, however, it appears that the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) may be of some use if it was modified for the site specific environmental conditions.
Article Summary / Main Points: None
Vegetation Types:
MLRA Ecoregions:
Agrovoc Control Words: Riparian zones Rangelands Wildlife
Article Review Type: Refereed
Article Type: Experimental Research
Keywords: bromus inermis, multispectral scanner (mss), normalized difference vegetation index (ndvi), greenness index, n fertilization, remote sensing, simulated grazing stresses
Annotation: Different intensities of grazing were simulated by mowing plots to 5, 10, or 20 cm heights seven times during the grazing season. There was also an un-mowed control.,Ammonium nitrate was applied at a rate of 10 g/m2 as the fertilization treatment.
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