Grassland Ecosystems of the World: Analysis of Grasslands and Their Uses


Book Description

Background; The nature of grassland; Problems in studying grassland ecosystems; Natural temperate grasslands; Semi-natural temperate meadows and pastures; Tropical grasslands; Arable grasslands; Croplands.




Grasslands, Systems Analysis and Man


Book Description

This 1980 book was a synthesis of much of the recent work on the functioning of grassland ecosystems at the time.




Grassland Productivity and Ecosystem Services


Book Description

This book contains 28 chapters with emphasis on the interactive nature of the relationships between the soil, plant, animal and environmental components of grassland systems, both natural and managed. It analyses the present knowledge and the future trends of research for combining the classical view of grasslands, as a resource for secure feeding of an increasing human population, with the more recent perspective of the contribution of grasslands to the mitigation of environmental impacts and biodiversity erosion as consequences of human society activities. The chapters are organized within five sections dealing with the different functions and the main ecosystem services expected from grasslands: (i) domestic herbivore feeding and animal production; (ii) the regulation of biogeochemical cycles and its consequences for the environment; (iii) dynamics of biodiversity hosted by grasslands; (iv) integration of grasslands within sustainable animal production systems; and (v) interactions of grassland areas with other land use systems at the landscape level.










Perspectives in Grassland Ecology


Book Description

This volume is a result of the summary and synthesis of data collected in the Grassland Biome Program, which is part of the American contribution to the International Biological Program (IBP). The purpose of this volume is to present a summary of quantitative ecological investigations of North American grass lands and to present a set of broad comparisons of their characteristics and functions as well as the results of some models and experiments that lead to practical considerations of the management of grasslands. Synthesis is a continuing activity in science. Early in the Grassland Biome Program there was a synthesis of literature data on grasslands, edited by R. L. Dix and R. G. Beidleman (1969). Results of the first year of field data collection under this program were synthesized in a volume edited by N. R. French (1971). Development of the large-scale model constructed to depict the processes and the dynamics of state variables in grassland ecosystems was presented by Innis (1978). Soon to appear will be two volumes integrating studies of American grasslands with IBP studies in other grasslands of the world (Coupland, in press) and the application of systems analysis to understanding grassland function and utilization (Breymeyer and Van Dyne, in press). The present volume presents current results and comparisons of field investigations and experimental studies that were conducted under this program.




Structure and Function in Agroecosystem Design and Management


Book Description

Structure and Function in Agroecosystem Design and Management presents an advanced discussion of the need to design agricultural systems that 1) increase reliance on biological interactions in agroecosystems as a means of decreasing dependence on the use of large quantities of agrochemicals and the consumption of fossil fuel energy and 2) continue