Timing of drought in the growing season and strong legacy effects determine the annual productivity of temperate grasses in a changing climate

Hahn, Claudia; Lüscher, Andreas; Ernst-Hasler, Sara; Suter, Matthias; Kahmen, Ansgar

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-585-2021

Articles | Volume 18, issue 2

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-585-2021

© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-585-2021

© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 18, issue 2

Research article

|

27 Jan 2021

Research article |

| 27 Jan 2021

Timing of drought in the growing season and strong legacy effects determine the annual productivity of temperate grasses in a changing climate

Claudia Hahn, Andreas Lüscher, Sara Ernst-Hasler, Matthias Suter, and Ansgar Kahmen

Data sets

Timing of drought in the growing season Claudia Hahn https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4306840

Short summary

While existing studies focus on the immediate effects of drought events on grassland productivity, long-term effects are mostly neglected. But, to conclude universal outcomes, studies must consider comprehensive ecosystem mechanisms. In our study, we found that the resistance of growth rates to drought in grasses varies across seasons, and positive legacy effects of drought indicate a high resilience. The high resilience compensates for immediate drought effects on grasses to a large extent.