The ecology of a montane grassland in Sri Lanka. VII. Biomass production

Abstract

Biomass accumulation was studied monthly on 2 montane grasslands in Sri Lanka at 900 m and 560 m alt. from June 1976 to May 1977. The upper site was a dense sward dominated by Cymbopogon nardus (65.4%), Themeda tremula (25.4%) andEulalia trispicata (10.1% of standing crop) and the lower site was a sparse sward dominated by C. nardus (68.6%) and Panicum maximum (13.9%) with somePennisetum polystachyon (7.7%). Total standing crop biomass was higher at the upper site than at the lower site and increased 4-fold at both sites over the years. Productivity estimates were 911.2 g/m² for the upper sites and 679.5 g for the lower site. There was no significant difference in the amount of C. nardus between sites, but the upper site supported a much denser sward of T. tremula accounting for the higher productivity of this site.