Effects of clipping and irrigation on carbon storage in grasses: implications for CO2 emission mitigation in rangelands
dc.creator | Tuffa, Samuel | |
dc.creator | Hoag, Dana | |
dc.creator | Treydte, Anna C. | |
dc.date | 2020-04-16T08:13:25Z | |
dc.date | 2020-04-16T08:13:25Z | |
dc.date | 2018-04-03 | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2022-10-25T09:20:42Z | |
dc.date.available | 2022-10-25T09:20:42Z | |
dc.description | This research article published by Taylor & Francis Online, 2018 | |
dc.description | Understanding how individual grasses respond to herbivory and rainfall has been hampered by the difficulty of quantifying above- and belowground carbon (C) storage in grasses. Particularly by restoring degraded rangelands through reseeding, their C storage potential can be greatly enhanced. The responses of reseeded grasses to the effects of herbivory and precipitation were assessed to evaluate the potential of individual grasses for C storage as a technique for climate change mitigation. Clipping experiments were conducted on mature grass tufts of two native grass species, Chloris gayana and Cenchrus ciliaris, in the semi-arid Borana rangelands, Ethiopia. Further, above- and belowground C storage of young grasses of the same species in pot and field plot trials was experimentally quantified under simulated grazing and variable rainfall. The results showed that aboveground C was significantly 4 times lower in the clipped compared to unclipped mature grasses. In contrast, 3 times higher C was found in young reseeded grasses that were clipped compared to unclipped ones. Clipping and irrigation in combination significantly influenced belowground C in young grasses, with reduced irrigation overriding clipping effects. The paper concludes that moderate grazing should be encouraged to enhance CO2 uptake, consequently contributing to climate change mitigation in rangelands. | |
dc.format | application/pdf | |
dc.identifier | https://doi.org/10.1080/17583004.2018.1451963 | |
dc.identifier | https://dspace.nm-aist.ac.tz/handle/20.500.12479/719 | |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/95172 | |
dc.language | en | |
dc.publisher | Taylor & Francis Online | |
dc.subject | Herbaceous layer restoration | |
dc.subject | Livestock management | |
dc.subject | Rainfall variability | |
dc.title | Effects of clipping and irrigation on carbon storage in grasses: implications for CO2 emission mitigation in rangelands | |
dc.type | Article |