Raw data: multispecies amplicon sequencing (Loera, Studer, and Kölliker, 2021, Molecular Ecology Resources)

Grasslands cover close to two fifths of Earth's land. They provide many ecosystem services related to the maintenance of soil integrity, and the regulation of water, carbon and nitrogen flows. Grasslands constitute the basis for sustainable roughage production for ruminant feeding. In Switzerland, grasslands cover more than 70% of the total agricultural land, which highlights their importance in the domestic food production chains.

Plant genetic diversity (PGD), a component of biodiversity, influences ecosystem functioning in grasslands. High levels of grassland PGD are related to resistance against invasive plants and yield stabilization during environmental stress (e.g., drought or frost). The PGD of grasses and legumes —the two most economically relevant plant families found in grasslands, which naturally grow in a wide climate spectrum— harbors valuable genetic resources for forage breeding. Nevertheless, most PGD studies of natural or semi-natural grasslands (i.e., grasslands th...