Fodder Productivity and Quality in Two Coastal Seashore Meadows in Eastern Uusimaa, Finland
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Fodder Productivity and Quality in Two Coastal Seashore Meadows in Eastern Uusimaa, Finland Graduate Thesis In partial fulfilment of the requirements for Master of Science Degree Department of Applied Biology University of Helsinki By Traci Birge October 2004 HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO HELSINGFORS UNIVERSITET UNIVERSITY OF HELSINKI Tiedekunta/Osasto Fakultet/Sektion Faculty Laitos Institution Department Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry Department of Applied Biology Tekijä Författare Author Traci Lynn Birge Työn nimi Arbetets titel Title Fodder Productivity and Quality in Two Coastal Seashore Meadows in Eastern Uusimaa, Finland Oppiaine Läroämne Subject Agroecology (as specialisation in Crop Husbandry) Aika Datum Month and year Sivumäärä Sidoantal Number of pages 88p + appendices October 2004 Tiivistelmä Referat Abstract Productivity and quality of two grazed coastal seashore meadows in Eastern Uusimaa were examined between May and July, 2002. A total of 18 1m2 sample sites divided into four separate cutting regimes were cut by hand to simulate grazing in the meadow. cutting regimes of various intensities were used to simulate the short term effects of different grazing pressures on the quality and productivity of the vascular plant forage in the meadows. Samples were dried, weighed and analysed for digestibility and composition. Digestibility analysis was carried out using in vitro digestibility analysis. A CNS- 1000 Elemental Analyzer was used to measure carbon, nitrogen and sulphur content of selected samples. The results showed that cumulative above ground phytomass productivity (AGPP) was dependent upon both biotope and cutting regime in the large (40 ha) Bosgård meadow, and that interaction betweeen these two factors was significant. The results of the smaller (<2 ha) Majvik meadow were highly variable between replicates. This variation overshadowed possible effects of biotope and cutting regime and their interaction. Quality was dependent upon both biotope and cutting regime. D-value decreased over time. Avainsanat Nyckelord Keywords Meadows, coastal wetlands, seashore meadow, grazing, heritage landscape, meadow management, D-value Säilytyspaikka Förvaringsställe Where deposited University of Helsinki, Viikki Muita tietoja Övriga uppgifter Further information Supervisor: Professor Juha Helenius Acknowledgements I am indebted to many people who made this project possible. My thanks to the farmers, Kaarlo Schildt and Niklas Ramm-Schmidt, who provided access to their meadows and their generous contributions of time; my advisor, Juha Helenius for guidance and encouragement on this project, especially with the statistical analysis and other tricky bits; and Irina Herzon for the same. I am indebted to Mikko Tuori, who advised on the quality analysis portion of this work and recommended and arranged digestibility analysis (D-value) to determine fodder quality. Thanks also to Sanna Tarmi, who was responsible for the plant species identification, which was carried out in late summer 2003 with the agroecology graduate research group. Markku Tykkäläinen made this project possible through his planning and building of the fencing system in Bosgård, as well as teaching me how to use equipment for drying and milling samples. Thanks also to Ilmari Schepel and the Murmansk group for allowing me to join their group to learn more about D-value analysis. Several others have assisted in fence building, sample collection, and advising during this project. These include both University of Helsinki staff and others. Thanks to all. This project was made possible through funding by the Department of Applied Biology at the University of Helsinki. Table of Contents PART I: LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................................................ 3 CHAPTER 1 ................................................................................................................................................... 3 COASTAL MEADOWS IN FINLAND.......................................................................................................... 3 MEADOWS AS A HERITAGE LANDSCAPE......................................................................................................... 3 HISTORY OF COASTAL (SEASHORE) MEADOWS IN FINLAND............................................................................ 4 Modern Farming ..................................................................................................................................... 8 Endangered Landscapes .......................................................................................................................... 9 ECOLOGY OF SEASHORE MEADOWS............................................................................................................. 11 Ecological Importance........................................................................................................................... 13 Meadow Biodiversity ............................................................................................................................. 14 Nutrient Cycling .................................................................................................................................... 15 Grazing in Coastal Meadows ................................................................................................................. 20 CULTURAL HISTORY AND AESTHETIC VALUE OF TRADITIONAL LANDSCAPES ............................................... 24 CHAPTER 2 ................................................................................................................................................. 26 MANAGEMENT OF COASTAL MEADOWS ........................................................................................... 26 MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS............................................................................................................ 26 Management Perspective ....................................................................................................................... 26 Grazing Recommendations..................................................................................................................... 29 Haying Recommendations...................................................................................................................... 32 PROJECTS AND ORGANISATIONS .................................................................................................................. 34 Natura 2000 .......................................................................................................................................... 36 SUBSIDIES AND REGULATIONS..................................................................................................................... 37 PART II: FIELD RESEARCH..................................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER 3 ................................................................................................................................................. 41 RESEARCH QUESTION AND METHODOLOGY ................................................................................... 41 PURPOSE OF THE FIELD STUDY .................................................................................................................... 41 Methodology.......................................................................................................................................... 42 CHAPTER 4 ................................................................................................................................................. 43 RICH PICTURE OF TWO FARMS............................................................................................................ 43 UUSIMAA ................................................................................................................................................... 43 MAJVIK ...................................................................................................................................................... 45 Farm Family.......................................................................................................................................... 45 Coastal Meadow.................................................................................................................................... 46 BOSGÅRD ................................................................................................................................................... 48 Coastal Meadow.................................................................................................................................... 50 Economics............................................................................................................................................. 51 CHAPTER 5 ................................................................................................................................................. 53 MATERIALS AND METHODS .................................................................................................................. 53 CHOOSING THE STUDY SITES....................................................................................................................... 53 Birch Biotope ........................................................................................................................................ 53 Grassland Biotope................................................................................................................................