Vegetation science

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The vegetation science is a part of Geobotany . Depending on the question , certain work directions are applied (structure according to Frey and Lösch).

Floristic-systematic vegetation - plant sociology

The plant sociological method according to Josias Braun-Blanquet , which is widespread in Central Europe , assumes that plants do not live individually or in isolation in their occurrence. They are usually associated with other species. With this method, a certain plant population, in which the plants are distributed "quasi-homogeneously", is recorded by noting the plant species and estimating their coverage or thickness on the area . In addition, it is estimated how certain species are distributed over the area, whether they are regularly scattered, clustered or occur individually. The various " recordings " are then placed side by side in tables according to the similarity of the recorded parameters. Several similar stands can be combined into plant sociological units and compared with those from other areas.

During the 20th century a hierarchical system was created in this way, in which the association forms the basic unit. Several associations are summarized in associations , these in orders and these in turn in classes of syntaxa (analogous to the taxa in the natural system of organisms) (cf. e.g. forest societies of Central Europe ).

Physiognomic vegetation structure

In the physiognomic-ecological and ecological-site classification of vegetation, the shape types or growth forms as well as the life forms of the species (dominant) in a certain population are taken into account. The basic unit considered here is the formation , a term that was coined by August Grisebach as early as 1838. Formations are also summarized in a hierarchical system, this should be illustrated using three examples:

Formation class Bushes Herbaceous land plant communities Aquatic plant formations
Formation subclass Xeromorphic bush formations Herb corridors Reed dishes
Formation group Very open xeromorphic bush formations (semi-desert bushes) Perennial corridors Freshwater sea reeds
formation - Bracken -Dickicht -

Vegetation mapping

Maps are useful to describe the vegetation in an area. In doing so, suitable defined vegetation units are recorded for the respective scale and displayed in the maps (plant sociological or society maps, formation maps, biotope type maps, forest site maps, etc.).

There are various methods of categorizing vegetation. A traditional method is that of the ecological series .

Research into pointer values ​​and ecological species groups

Certain plants have been used as "pointers" for certain location conditions since ancient times (lime pointers, wet indicators ...). According to the system introduced by Ellenberg , the ecological behavior of a certain plant species is described by a pointer value in 9 to 12 levels.

Especially in forest site mapping, stands are described according to the occurrence of several specific species ( groups of species ), which are also easily recognizable for non-specialists.

Vegetation dynamics

The term vegetation dynamics summarizes all qualitative and quantitative changes in plant stocks over time: the phenological change ( annual rhythm ), vegetation fluctuations within several years (e.g. due to climatic changes), cyclical stock changes e.g. due to pest calamities or succession (succession of plant communities in more or less long periods Periods due to the spread of a species ).

Scientific representatives

literature

  • Josias Braun-Blanquet: Plant Sociology , Basics of Vegetation Science. (3. Edition). Springer Verlag, Vienna 1964
  • Hartmut Dierschke: Plant Sociology . Basics and methods. Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart 1994
  • Klaus Dierssen: Introduction to Plant Sociology . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1990
  • Heinz Ellenberg : Vegetation of Central Europe with the Alps from an ecological point of view. 4th, improved edition. Ulmer, Stuttgart 1986, ISBN 3-8001-3430-6 .
  • Wolfgang Frey & Rainer Lösch: Textbook of Geobotany. 2nd edition 2004.
  • Bernd Gehlken: Class lottery, the sociology of plants between knowledge of vegetation, formalism and technocracy. In: Notebook of the Kasseler Schule 55 (2000), pp. 259–326
  • Gerhard Hofmann & Harro Passarge: The plant society of the northeast German lowlands. I. In: Pflanzensoz. 13, pp. 1-324 (1964)
  • Gerhard Hofmann & Harro Passarge: The plant society of the northeast German lowlands. II. In: Pflanzensoz. 16, pp. 1-298 (1968)
  • Harro Passarge & Gerhard Hofmann: Plant Associations of the Northeast German Plain II. VEB Gustav Fischer Verlag, Jena 1968
  • Richard Pott: The plant communities in Germany. Verlag Eugen Ulmer, 2nd edition, Stuttgart 1995
  • Richard Pott: General Geobotany - Biogeosystems and Biodiversity. Springer Verlag 2005
  • Fritz Runge: The plant communities in Germany. (4th edition). Aschendorff Verlag, Münster 1973
  • Reinhold Tüxen (Ed.): Basic questions and methods in plant sociology. Publishing house Dr. W. Junk NV, The Hague 1972
  • Reinhold Tüxen: The plant communities of Northwest Germany. 1st and 2nd delivery. (2nd Edition). J. Cramer Publishing House, Vaduz 1974, 1979
  • Otti Wilmanns: Ecological plant sociology-an introduction to the vegetation of Central Europe. Quelle & Meyer, Wiesbaden 1998

Web links

Vegetation methods

Associations and working groups

Series of publications

Databases