EVENT 1
Links to publications and pictures of EVENT 1
Intensification of weather extremes is currently emerging as one of the most important aspects of Climate Change. Surprisingly, the significance of extreme events for vegetation dynamics and ecological processes still is underrated, although their effects are obvious and out of proportion compared to their short duration of occurrence. Some work is done already concerning changes in mean temperature or mean CO2-level. However, we propose that extreme events are even more important for vegetation response.
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| EVENT 1: Overview |
Experimental Design
The experiment is carried out in a two-factorial design manipulating
(1) weather events (drought, heavy rain, freeze-thaw cycles, control), and
(2) community composition (10 species divided a priori into grasses, dwarf shrubs, and herbs, of which one dwarf shrub and one herb were legumes).
The design consists of 150 plots, each two by two meters in size, with every factorial combination replicated five times. Manipulations are applied in a modified Latin Square design; experimental plant communities are blocked and randomly assigned within each manipulation.
Response Parameters
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| EVENT 1: Calluna Measurement |
Performance of communities and single species is measured with a variety of parameters, covering all important stages in the life cycle of plants (inter alia cover, above and belowground biomass production, flowering, seed production, germinability, or photosynthetic activity). Furthermore, abiotic parameters like soil moisture, precipitation and temperature are recorded on site. Through cooperation partners, other important ecosystem parameters are analyzed, e.g. gas exchange, soil fauna or microbial activity.