1. Three decades of spontaneous succession in abandoned fields. © Alena Jírová © Alena Jírová2009 Supervisor: Karel Prach

2. Introduction SUCCESSION OF ABANDONED FIELD = OLD FIELD SUCCESSION special case of secondary succession 1860-1990 abandoned >200 mil. ha of croplands over the world ??? initial stages important for rare annual weed species © botany.cz old stages for steppe species, orchids, bird birches or as a natural buffer zones RESTORATION ECOLOGY

3. BASIC GRAPHS … OLD WELL-KNOWN FACTS (Živa 2009) Age of fields (years) Forest Meadow Ruderal Annuals Forbs Per. grasses Trees & shrubs Spontaneous succession in abandoned fields

4. The protected areas of the ČR Study site The Bohemian Karst Protected area: 131 km 2 1975: 110 abandoned fields (0,7 % of its area]

5. 1-6 y) 1. Young (1-6 y) ….1969 and later 2. Old (7-16) ….1959-1968 3. Older (17-30 y) … 1945-1958 31-60 y 4. The oldest (31-60 y) …1944 and earlier Why abandoned? 1-6 y, Age of field in 1975 – 1-6 y, 7-16 y,, 31-45 y, 46-60 y. WHEN ABANDONED? low productivity of soil or too small fields JZD - low productivity of soil or too small fields Colectivization of privat fields (JZD), abandoned even large fields with extreme conditions – not usefull for intensive agriculture..during war and before => only few abandoned

6. Methods 36 fields (2008) of 58 (1975) 34 age of the fields: 34 - 88 years plots of 4 x 4m percentage scale (r, +, 1-100 %) in 2008 and the Domin in 1975 slope and aspect of the former relevés CANOCO, no transformation Repeated measurement (after 33 years) © botany.cz 1-6 y, Age of field in 1975 – 1-6 y, 7-16 y,, 31-45 y, 46-60 y.

7. Results DCA of all vegetation samples 1975 2008 1-6 y Age of field in 1975 – 1-6 y, 7- 16 y, 17-30 y, 31-45 y, 46-60 y. 55 y88 y 20081975 © A. Klaudisová REALLY „OLD“ FIELD

8. Results 1-6 y Age of field in 1975 – 1-6 y, 7-16 y, 17-30 y, 31-45 y, 46-60 y. 35 y36 y 1975 2008 AND THE YOUNGEST FIELDS ?

9. Results DCA of herb layer species Vegetation samples represented by centroids. + Cover of tree and shrub layers. 1-6 y Age of field in 1975 – 1-6 y, 7-16 y, 17-30 y, 31-60 y. 1975 2008 59 y (26) GETTING TOGETHER

10. Some conclusions The spontaneous succession is the cheap possibility of the management. Just wait and you will see However it is possible to use it only in some kinds of the ladscape. There is a call for some other studies. (Three decades of spontaneous succession in abandoned fields.) 55 y88 y 20081975 © A. Klaudisová The shruby grasslands as a result of the spontaneous succession are very valuable habitats.

11. 68 y 58 y ? ? ? WHAT NEXT? SOIL & SORROUNDING MYSTERY OF TERASES

12. Thanks for attention Thanks for attention & my field-helpers and all grants for help and support