Grassland Management Impact on Soil Degradation and Herbage Nutritional Value in a Temperate Humid Environment

Igor Bogunovic, Kristina Kljak, Ivan Dugan, Darko Grbeša, Leon Josip Telak, Marija Duvnjak, Ivica Kisic, Marijana Kapović Solomun and Paulo Pereira
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Igor Bogunovic: Department of General Agronomy, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Kristina Kljak: Department of Animal Nutrition, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Ivan Dugan: Department of General Agronomy, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Darko Grbeša: Department of Animal Nutrition, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Leon Josip Telak: Department of General Agronomy, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Marija Duvnjak: Department of Animal Nutrition, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Ivica Kisic: Department of General Agronomy, University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Marijana Kapović Solomun: Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry, University of Banja Luka, Stepe Stepanovića 75A, 78000 Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Paulo Pereira: Environmental Management Laboratory, Mykolas Romeris University, LT-08303 Vilnius, Lithuania

Agriculture, 2022, vol. 12, issue 7, 1-19

Abstract: Understanding the importance of grassland management is crucial for predicting the effects on forage production, pasture and ecosystem stability. Studies about the impact of grassland management in temperate humid environments on soil, erosion and aboveground biomass properties are lacking. This study investigates the effect of different grassland managements—no grazing, moderate grazing and heavy grazing—on soil properties, hydrological responses and herbage quality in an organic farm located in Croatia. The results showed that heavy grazing significantly increased soil compaction, structural deterioration, erosion and nutrient transport compared with no grazing. Heavily grazed plots had significantly higher soil organic matter and nutrient concentrations compared with no-grazing plots. Moderately grazed plots had the highest biomass production and the herbage with higher quality compared with other treatments. Significantly higher ash contents on heavily and moderately grazed plots were due to cow trampling. Cow grazing behaviour was a more important factor for plant regrowth and herbage quality than soil properties. Moderate grazing did not induce serious soil erosion problems or reduce soil productivity. Soil conservation measures should focus only on the heavily grazed areas and include the introduction of rotational grazing in combination with various strategies: excluding grazing, reseeding and increasing the diversity of resting areas.

Keywords: soil compaction; sediment loss; vegetation; soil quality; cow; digestibility (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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