Research institutes

    Gene conservation for grassland species and varieties

    The changes in the management of our cultural landscape have increased rapidly in recent years. This also applies to grassland farming. An ecologically oriented, environmentally friendly, heavily subsidy-dependent mountain agriculture faces the economic pressure for intensification and economic optimization in the intensive grassland production areas. The unbroken trend towards increasing cutting frequency and grazing intensity - short-grass pasture has now also penetrated the Alpine region - is increasingly pushing the permanent grassland stocks in the Alpine region to the limits of their performance. Climate, geology, topography and traditional forms of management have created a variety of different, very species-rich grassland stands. These form the basis for the high biodiversity of plants and animals in the Alpine region. However, the proportion of extensive grassland with natural stands has been declining for decades.

    On better sites, cultivation is often intensified, which means that biodiversity declines very quickly. In poorer locations, use is often abandoned, as this is usually associated with reforestation. This leads to a further decline in extensive grassland. The protection, preservation and sustainable use of these genetic resources of extensive grassland is therefore an essential task. Maintaining genetic diversity within species is an important contribution to maintaining the biodiversity of these plant communities. In view of Austria's very different climate zones and the variety of location and management factors, it is important to record, sift and secure the resulting genetic diversity. However, this goal will not be achievable through in situ conservation measures alone. There are now ways to not only protect such valuable habitats, but also to reintegrate them into our cultural landscape.

    Regular reseeding and overseeding with commercial seeds leads to a loss of the original diversity.

    Regular reseeding and overseeding with commercial seeds leads to a loss of the original diversity.

     (c) HBLFA Raumberg-Gumpenstein