Frankow-Lindberg, Bodil
- Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Abstract
A coordinated continental-scale field experiment across 31 sites was used to compare the biomass yield of monocultures and four species mixtures associated with intensively managed agricultural grassland systems. To increase complementarity in resource use, each of the four species in the experimental design represented a distinct functional type derived from two levels of each of two functional traits, nitrogen acquisition (N2-fixing legume or nonfixing grass) crossed with temporal development (fast-establishing or temporally persistent). Relative abundances of the four functional types in mixtures were systematically varied at sowing to vary the evenness of the same four species in mixture communities at each site and sown at two levels of seed density. Across multiple years, the total yield (including weed biomass) of the mixtures exceeded that of the average monoculture in >97% of comparisons. It also exceeded that of the best monoculture (transgressive overyielding) in about 60% of sites, with a mean yield ratio of mixture to best-performing monoculture of 1 center dot 07 across all sites. Analyses based on yield of sown species only (excluding weed biomass) demonstrated considerably greater transgressive overyielding (significant at about 70% of sites, ratio of mixture to best-performing monoculture=1 center dot 18). Mixtures maintained a resistance to weed invasion over at least 3years. In mixtures, median values indicate
Keywords
agronomic mixtures; diversity effect; ecosystem function; forage yield; functional groups; monocultures; resource efficiency; sustainable intensification; traits; transgressive overyielding
Published in
Journal of Applied Ecology
2013, volume: 50, number: 2, pages: 365-375
Publisher: WILEY-BLACKWELL
SLU Authors
Gustavsson, Anne-Maj
- Department of Agricultural Research for Northern Sweden, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- Department of Agricultural Research for Northern Sweden, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
UKÄ Subject classification
Ecology
Agricultural Science
Publication identifier
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12041
Permanent link to this page (URI)
https://res.slu.se/id/publ/42253