NDLI: The double mosaic-regeneration of vegetation and soil after clearing, burning, and cultivation: lessons from the Forchtenberg experiment

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Schulz, Erhard Vannina, Ulrich Hall, Mathias
Copyright Year	2014
Abstract	A multidisciplinary experimental research programme has run since 1997 at an experimental test area on the Hohenlohe plain near Forchtenberg, southwest Germany, where a 3.5 ha area of a mixed Carpinus betulus, Fraxinus excelsior, Acer pseudoplatanus and Fagus sylvatica forest is being used to research into questions on the early steps of cultural landscape development in Central Europe. The experiments which are being conducted here include forest clearance, burning and cultivation, as well as the recording of the succession stages of vegetation and soil. With respect to vegetation development, the first stage is that of ordinary regrowth, starting with colonisation by grasses and herbs followed by a shrub cover, its topping by pioneer trees or by their re-growth from stumps, leading to a new tree layer. The first stages of this forest regeneration are already visible in the third year after felling, with respect to vegetation as well as soil surface development. The alternative pathway of regeneration of the vegetation is represented as the “ruderal way”, which is characterised by a monotypic colonisation by high forbs such as Eupatorium, Epilobium or mostly Cirsium, which slows the development of a shrub cover. Topsoil and soil surface recovery goes parallel to that of vegetation. A first stage of pellicular soil surfaces is followed by grass felts and later on by leaf overlays which are often mixed with bare crumbly surfaces as signs of rapid turnover. Charcoal may either be displaced by earthworms or concentrated and weathered in situ by the soil microfauna of enchytraeids, mites and collembols. Charcoal also records the earlier cultivation by forming an Ap horizon. The development of ruderal vegetation within the forest environment should be considered when reconstructing the development of cultural landscapes.
Starting Page	19
Ending Page	36
Page Count	18
File Format	PDF
ISSN	09396314
Journal	Vegetation History and Archaeobotany
Volume Number	23
Issue Number	1
e-ISSN	16176278
Language	English
Publisher	Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Publisher Date	2014-04-17
Publisher Place	Berlin, Heidelberg
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Experimental landscape ecology Fire impact Succession lines Soil development Indicators of human interference Southwest Germany Paleontology Biogeosciences Climate Change Anthropology Archaeology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Plant Science Archeology (arts and humanities) Paleontology

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