Cut trees and remove leaf litter

Overall effectiveness category Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)
Number of studies: 1
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

45%
Certainty

10%
Harms

3%

Calculating overall effectiveness category

Background information and definitions

This section considers the cutting of trees combined with removal of leaf litter. The cutting of trees may reduce their abundance while the removal of leaf litter may aid the propagation of shrubland plant species.

Study locations

Key messages

One before-and-after trial in the Netherlands found that cutting trees and removing the litter layer increased the cover of two heather species and of three grass species.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A before-and-after trial in 1989–1994 in a formerly forested wet heathland in the Netherlands (Jansen et al. 1996) found that cutting trees and removing the leaf litter layer increased the cover of two heather and three grass species. Fifteen years after trees were cut and leaf litter removed, the cover of common heather Calluna vulgaris and cross-leaved heath Erica tetralix (heather: 3%; cross-leaved heath: 2%) was higher than before cutting and removal of leaf litter (heather: 0%; cross-leaved heath: 0%). This pattern was also seen for purple moor-grass Molinia caerulea (before: 0%; after: 18%), bulbous rush Juncus bulbosus (before: 0%; after: 9%), and sharp flower rush Juncus acutiflorus (before: 0%; after: 7%). All trees were cut and the leaf litter removed in winter 1989. Twelve permanent plots measuring either 1 m² or 4 m² were established at the site in 1989 and vegetation cover was recorded in July or August for every year in 1989–1994.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Jansen A.J.M., de Graaf M.C.C. & Roelofs J.G.M. (1996) The restoration of species-rich heathland communities in the Netherlands. Plant Ecology (formerly Vegetatio 1948-1996), 73-88.

Please cite as:

Martin, P.A., Rocha, R., Smith, R.K. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Shrubland and Heathland Conservation. Pages 483-525 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Shrubland and Heathland Conservation

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