Effects of cultivation practice on floristic and flowering diversity of spontaneously growing plant species on arable fields

In the past, the floristic diversity of arable fields has been described in terms of species diversity (SD) and their degree of coverage (C), but never in combination with the recording of the actually flowered species (FS) and their flowering intensity (FI) to striking differences in the cultivation methods on arable land. In relation with SD and C, however, FS and FI may provide important additional information on the functional biodiversity of fields. The aim was therefore to investigate the effects of a) conventional, b) organic  as well as c) smallholder (never application of herbicides) on the floristic diversity. Using a region in Germany, we investigated SD, C, FS and FI synchronously in a), b) and c), by 356 vegetation surveys (5x5m plots) conducted in spring and summer in 2019 in winter cereals. Statistical tests were used to analyse the differences between a), b) and c). The medians were used to compare the floristic diversity of a), b) and c) and finally relationships of FS ...