Cut bracken and rotovate

How is the evidence assessed?

Study locations

Key messages

  • One controlled study in the UK found that cutting followed by rotovating to control bracken did not increase total plant biomass or biomass of heather.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

  1. A randomized, controlled trial in 1978–1986 in a heathland in Suffolk, UK (Lowday & Marrs 1992) found that rotovating soil after removal of bracken Pteridium aquilinium did not increase total plant biomass or biomass of heather Calluna vulgaris when compared to plots that were not rotovated (data reported in log units). In 1978 all plots were sprayed with the herbicide asulam. Four 12 m2 plots were rotovated to dig bracken leaf litter into soil and four plots were not rotovated. Vegetation was visually estimated annually in each plot in June or July in 1979–1986

    Study and other actions tested
Please cite as:

Martin, P.A., Rocha, R., Smith, R.K. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Shrubland and Heathland Conservation. Pages 483-525 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

Shrubland and Heathland Conservation

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Shrubland and Heathland Conservation
Shrubland and Heathland Conservation

Shrubland and Heathland Conservation - Published 2017

Shrubland and Heathland synopsis

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