Ruochen Wang^1,#, Jianjun Dong^2,#, Lishan Jin³, Yuyan Sun³, Taogetao Baoyin², Xiumei Wang^*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.93, No.2, pp. 387-411, 2024, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2024.047573

Abstract Grassland biomass is an important parameter of grassland ecosystems. The complexity of the grassland canopy vegetation spectrum makes the long-term assessment of grassland growth a challenge. Few studies have explored the original spectral information of typical grasslands in Inner Mongolia and examined the influence of spectral information on aboveground biomass (AGB) estimation. In order to improve the accuracy of vegetation index inversion of grassland AGB, this study combined ground and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) remote sensing technology and screened sensitive bands through ground hyperspectral data transformation and correlation analysis. The narrow band vegetation indices were calculated, and ground and airborne… More >

Simei Yao^1,2, Yu Jin^2,3, Limin Zhang², Ningfei Lei^1,*, Wei Xue^2,*, Jinsong Chen³, Qian Zhang², Feihai Yu^1,2

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.90, No.4, pp. 1259-1271, 2021, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2021.014968

Abstract Soil nutrients are commonly heterogeneously distributed and earthworms are one of the most common soil organisms. While effects of both soil nutrient heterogeneity and earthworms have been well studied, their interactive effect on plant community productivity has rarely been tested. In a greenhouse experiment, we constructed experimental plant communities by sowing seed mixtures of four grasses, two legumes and two forbs in either a heterogeneous soil consisting of low and high nutrient soil patches or a homogeneous soil where the low and high nutrient soil patches were evenly mixed. The earthworm Eisenia fetida was either added to these soils or… More >

Gul B¹, M Islam², S Ahmad³, S Gul¹

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.85, pp. 94-99, 2016, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2016.85.094

Abstract Spatial and temporal patterns of aboveground biomass and nutritive value of rangeland species with respect to the influence of grazing and soil moisture were investigated. The research was conducted during two years at the Tomagh Research Station, near Sanjawi, Ziarat District, Balochistan, Pakistan. This area is protected from grazing since 1998; however, some of the area is open for grazing. Three sites were selected for research purposes: a protected plain, a protected hilly, and an unprotected plain grazed area. Sampling was carried out during the spring, summer and autumn seasons. Results revealed that soil moisture was greater at the protected… More >

Ferrante D^1,2, A Cesa^1,2, S Lewis², G Jaurena³

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.83, pp. 127-131, 2014, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2014.83.127

Abstract In plants, compensatory growth takes place when the positive effects of defoliation compensate the negative ones, and defoliated plants show a similar or increased production in relation to non-defoliated plants. Our objective was to evaluate the ability to compensate defoliation of Poa spiciformis, a forage perennial tussock grass in southern Patagonia (Argentina). The experiment was performed in potted plants that grew under controlled conditions of watering and fertilization. Three defoliation frequencies were imposed (zero, three or five) using 20-25 day intervals among them. Harvest intensity was always equivalent to 50% of the aerial biomass. Fifteen plants were sampled per treatment,… More >

Wen L¹, SK Dong¹, YY Li¹, C Pulver², XY Li¹, JJ Shi³, YL Wang³, YS Ma³, DM Liu⁴

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.82, pp. 45-54, 2013, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2013.82.045

Abstract The alpine grassland in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is an extensive rangeland ecosystem sustaining a sparse population of traditional nomadic pastoralists in China. However, global climate change and anthropologic disturbances have severely degraded the alpine grasslands, and the consequences of this degradation are largely unknown. Forage is the only food source for livestock in the alpine region, and livestock is the major income source for nomadic herders. Therefore, it is critical to assess the forage quantity and quality along the current grassland degradation gradient. In this study, we examined the botanical composition, biomass of different functional groups, and forage grass nutritive… More >