GolfBiodivers

GolfBiodivers: From flower-poor grassland to diverse rough meadows. Enhancement of roughs on German golf courses

Duration: 2023-2026

Funding: Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUV)

Contact: Johannes Kollmann | Sandra Rojas-Botero

About

The current news about the impoverishment of many landscapes and the associated decline in flowering plants, insects and birds has reached the scale of a biodiversity crisis that has already been described as the "Second Silent Spring". As a contribution to solving this crisis, appropriate conservation measures are being implemented in many countries. Golf courses are playing an increasingly important role here. They are often created on land that was previously used for agriculture and therefore ecologically impoverished, and have great potential to promote biodiversity and certain ecological functions. This supports ecosystem services both within the golf course and in the surrounding landscape.

A promising strategy for promoting biodiversity on golf courses is the creation of lean grassland, as this does not conflict with the needs of agricultural production. If golf courses provide resources for pollinators in the form of pollen and nectar as well as nesting and hibernation sites, larger and more robust pollinator communities will form locally. Golfers would benefit from less dense and less grass-dominated roughs, which would make it easier to find balls and speed up the game. The conversion of some "semi-roughs" and fairways into rough grass would reduce the biomass production of these areas and thus also result in lower golf course maintenance costs. Adapted planning and maintenance of golf course vegetation is important to take advantage of this opportunity as a synergistic combination of increased biodiversity, improved playability of the course and reduced maintenance costs. However, there is a lack of ecological knowledge and practical experience in implementing this strategy. This project aims to close this gap.