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BD1460: Sustainable management systems for unimproved neutral grassland (RP00200)

Defra funded report BD1460, to determine the appropriate level of grazing by cattle to maintain species-rich grassland, and quantify the impact of grazing on invertebrates and on the growth of cattle. This will build on the research that was developed in a previous Defra project on integrating understanding to develop grazing and cutting guidelines.

Project details

Start date2007-04-01
End date2014-06-30

Project outputs

This project produced the following outputs:

OutputType
Final project report and summaryDefra publication

Closing statement

This project and its forerunner, BD1440, were primarily designed to inform the management of species-rich neutral grasslands within Environmental Stewardship. The research should also inform the management of such grasslands more widely and help deliver Biodiversity 2020 outcomes. Findings from this work include identifying that for growing cattle, grazing of this type of grassland should be restricted to spring and mid-summer otherwise there is a risk the cattle will perform poorly.

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