Suppression of an Invasive Native Plant Species by Designed Grassland Communities.

ABSTRACT: Grassland biodiversity is declining due to climatic change, land-use intensification, and establishment of invasive plant species. Excluding or suppressing invasive species is a challenge for grassland management. An example is Jacobaea aquatica, an invasive native plant in wet grasslands of Central Europe, that is causing problems to farmers by being poisonous, overabundant, and fast spreading. This study aimed at testing designed grassland communities in a greenhouse experiment, to determine key drivers of initial J. aquatica suppression, thus dismissing the use of pesticides. We used two base communities (mesic and wet grasslands) with three plant traits (plant height, leaf area, seed mass), that were constrained and diversified based on the invader traits. Native biomass, community-wei

SUBMITTER: Mohrle K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8071313 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature