Can a mesotrophic grassland community be restored on a post-industrial sandy site with compost made from waste materials?
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Published source details
Tandy S., Wallace H.L., Jones D.L., Nason M.A., Williamson J.C. & Healey J.R. (2011) Can a mesotrophic grassland community be restored on a post-industrial sandy site with compost made from waste materials?. Biological Conservation, 144, 500-510.
Published source details Tandy S., Wallace H.L., Jones D.L., Nason M.A., Williamson J.C. & Healey J.R. (2011) Can a mesotrophic grassland community be restored on a post-industrial sandy site with compost made from waste materials?. Biological Conservation, 144, 500-510.
Actions
This study is summarised as evidence for the following.
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Add fertilizer to soil before or after seeding/planting Action Link |
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Add fertilizer to soil before or after seeding/planting
A replicated, randomized, paired controlled study in 2006–2007 on the site of a former steelworks in Flintshire, UK (Tandy et al. 2011) found that adding fertilizer and sowing seeds increased vegetation cover and cover of specialist grassland species compared to sowing without fertilizer. Vegetation cover was higher in areas where compost was added to the soil alongside sowing of seeds (38–64% cover) than in areas where no compost was added to the soil but seeds were sown (10–22%). Cover of specialist grassland species was higher in areas where compost was added to the soil alongside sowing (6.4% cover) than in areas with seeding but no compost (0.3%). Compost produced from green waste (biosolids) or paper was added to twenty-four 8 x 3 m plots using a muck spreader along with seeds of 24 grassland species. In six plots, no compost was added but seeds were sown. Wood chip was also added to all compost mixtures prior to the composting process. In July 2007, a 1 x 1 m quadrat was established in each plot and the percentage cover of each plant species was assessed.
(Summarised by: Philip Martin)
Output references
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