University of Bonn study examines landscape diversity and grassland drought tolerance

During the heat wave of 2018, meadows and pastures suffered from drought, raising questions about whether grasslands located in more diverse landscapes are more resilient to yield losses than those in monotonous regions. This issue prompted a focused investigation into the relationship between landscape diversity and drought tolerance of grasslands.

Researchers at the University of Bonn, led by Marco Ferro and Dr. Jan Börner from the Institute for Food and Resource Economics (ILR), examined how varying landscape composition affects the drought resilience of grasslands. Their study was conducted as part of Collaborative Research Center 1502 DETECT, aiming to quantify the influence of landscape diversity on agricultural outcomes.

The findings were published in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics, providing evidence that grasslands in diverse landscapes can suffer less from drought compared to those in more uniform regions. The research, conducted by Marco Ferro and Dr. Jan Börner, was published in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics.