Regional seed mixtures as effective tool for protecting the diversity of grassland habitats
Meadows and other grasslands can be very species-rich. They are one of the most diverse communities in Europe and are thus one of the jewels of our nature. Unfortunately, many of them have been destroyed, losing a lot of species in the process. However, this can be changed.
Regional meadow seed mixtures have been used in the Czech Republic for quite a long time in some places, but only locally. But how can meadow restoration in this way be extended to as many areas as possible? Will the technologies we have experience with in some places work well elsewhere? What about trying out some new ones?
These are the questions that the Czech Union for Nature Conservation and its partners in Czech Republic, and in HVL, are trying to answer in a project called "Regional seed mixtures as an effective tool for protecting the diversity of grassland habitats". Inger Auestad and Knut Rydgren in the HVL research group Landscape, Ecology and Climate contribute to knowledge exchange in the joint project.
This project has several objectives. Firstly, to find as many meadows with high biodiversity as possible across the country that can serve as a source of seeds, map them all and enter them into a database. Secondly: to test different seed collection technologies in different places and see how well they work. And thirdly: to disseminate all the knowledge and experience gathered to as many people as possible.
Read more about the project on this website.
Project Manager
Project Owner/ Coordinating Institution
Project Partners
Funding
The project is funded by The EEA and Norway Grants Fund for Regional Cooperation.
Total budget: NOK 10.131.303
More information about Norway grants
Local Project Manager at HVL
