Deák-Valkó blog: Kurgan restoration - a pilot project in the Hortobágy National Park

Involvement of kurgans into the system of agricultural subsidies was an important step forward in preserving these iconic landscape elements. According to the regulations, in Hungary, farmers are not allowed to plough the kurgans (although it was typical case in the past), but they can consider the area of the kurgans as a part of the ecological focus areas (which result in an increase in the received subsidies). This construction can support the preservation of the structure of the kurgans in the whole country. However, for restoring grassland habitats on kurgans and improve their important role as significant landscape elements further active measures are needed. In the case of formerly ploughed kurgans this step is the restoration of dry grassland habitats on kurgans. Restored grassland vegetation can mitigate the populations of weed species on the abandoned kurgans and by active plant introduction also several grassland species can be established on the kurgans with a relatively low cost. Reduction of weeds can increase the landscape value of the kurgans and also profitable for the farmers as the suppression of weeds on the kurgan also decreases the amount of weeds in the neighbouring crops. The established grassland species can increase the landscape-scale biodiversity, and the restored grassland patches can be essential elements of the landscape-scale network of semi-natural habitats.

Our research group together with the colleagues from the Hortobágy National Park Directorate aimed to restore the grassland vegetation of two kurgans (Hegyes and Kishegyes mounds) near the settlement of Püspökladány. You can read about our former similar project here.

The sown grassland of the Hegyes mound; in the distance the smaller Kishegyes mound.

After the cessation of ploughing, both kurgans were sown by Festuca pseudovina which resulted in a closed grass cover on the kurgans hindering weed encroachment. Since the kurgans were quite a distance from the neighbouring natural grasslands, the spontaneous immigration of grassland plants to the kurgans was very slow. That is why in this year we applied active seed sowing to support this process. We sowed the seeds typical to local loess grasslands (Agropyron cristatum, Salvia austriaca, S. nemorosa, Filipendula vulgaris, Phlomis tuberosa and Dianthus pontederae) in small open patches (you can see our related post about the application of establishment gaps in sown grasslands here). For this we used the soil disturbances by small mammals and foxes, which due to their burrowing activity opened the otherwise closed grassland "mat" and prepared small scale soil disturbances. (You can read our paper about the effect of fox burrows on the populations of grassland species on kurgans here). Agropyron cristatum was sown on the top of the mounds, since in natural conditions this species often forms monodominant patches in this micro-habitat. The forb species were sown as a seed mixture into the open patches on the slopes. We hope that these species can establish successfully in the establishment gaps, and later they can be abundant on the kurgans. To support this process, an extensive grazing system will be introduced on the kurgans: in autumn, after the crop is harvested the mounds will be managed by cattle grazing.