Demonstration trial Wulfener Bruch/Germany

The receptor site Wulfener Bruch (11° 55' 50'' E, 51° 50' 34'' N) is located in the glacial valley of the river Elbe, c. 20 km east of the city of Bernburg at an altitude of 52 m. The climate is continental with only 462.5 mm average annual precipitation and a mean yearly temperature of 9 °C. The substrate consists of floodplain loam above deep carbon-rich fluviatile sand; the soil is a eutric Gleysols (Humusgley). For many years, the area was used as arable land, mainly for maize cultivation. The study site has an extension of 1 ha and the trial was realised on 0.78 ha.
To decrease the amount of nutrients, the site was cultivated with Sinapis arvensis in 2009 without fertilisation and with grubbing after harvesting to reduce weeds. In spring 2009, the plant available phosphor reached 8.7 mg per 100 g soil (0-20 cm depth).
The implementation of the trial was done in complete block design in the second half of September 2009 with four variants (OST, GH, OST+S, GH+S). The material was applied by hand. Vegetation analyses will be carried out on permanent plots (4 m x 4 m).

OST

sowing of seed-rich material from on-site threshing, first cut, 21 g per m²; ratio donor : receptor site c. 3 : 1, harvesting 7th September 2009, application 18th September 2009.

GH

application of Green Hay, first cut, c. 1700 g dry weight per m²; ratio donor : receptor site c. 3 : 1, harvesting and implementation 18th and 29th September 2009.

OST +S, GH +S

OST and GH variant with additional sowing of target species (low growing species, very early respectively late flowering species) with seeds from local origin (seed propagation or collection). In total, 17 species were sown with a density of 0.8 g seeds per m² (= c. 556 seeds per m²). On the receptor site, the sown area reached in total 3900 m² (12 x 325 m²). The seeds were sown before application of OST and GH on 18th September 2009.

Location of donor and receptor sites in the Wulfener Bruch area (data source background: aerophoto from area

inventory 2005, Ministry for Agriculture and Environment Saxony-Anhalt)

Receptor site Wulfener Bruch; variant Green Hay, directly after implementation on 18 September 2009	Receptor site Wulfener Bruch on 11 December 2009