Diverse native plant mixtures provide benefits up the food chain in more diverse wildlife populations8
Perennial energy crops are likely to provide better habitat than annual crops while preserving watersheds, wildlife and grassland birds
Wildlife habitat will increase from Biomass crops when they are similar to native ecosystems
Harvesting restored grasslands encourages new growth, prevents succession to competition from trees and shrubs, and maintains biodiversity9
Ecologist Mike Palmer points out grasslands have developed through biomass removal whether accomplished by fire, animal grazing, or mowing. 10
He cited an area in Estonia, a small country in northern Europe, which has been mowed for more than three centuries. “This area has the record highest diversity of plants per square meter, much higher than the tropical rain forest,” he says.
Similarly, hay meadow in the White Carpathian Mountains of Moravia in central Europe has been mowed continuously for more than 500 years.
In Oklahoma, eastern red cedar is invading abandoned grasslands near cities and creating new ecological problems by depleting water resources and becoming fire hazards as well as a source of allergens.
Seasonal timing of harvesting biomass balances yield from restored grasslands with the living habits of native wildlife
Prairies provide nectar that supports insects, which benefit insect-pollinated food crops in nearby fields11
Long-lived perennial plants support myriad animals while their deep, fine roots create sponge that absorbs water and releases it in measured rates to sustain the system
